Urologic Nurses Named Continence Care Champion

Online, March 16, 2010 (Newswire.com) - The National Association For Continence (NAFC) awarded Leslie Saltzstein Wooldridge, MSN, RNCS, GNP-BC, and Francie Bernier, PhD, MSN, RNC with the Rodney Appell Continence Care Champion Award at the Society of Urologic Nurses and Associates (SUNA) Annual Symposium on March 12, 2010. Presented by Megan Hansen, fund development manager for NAFC, this honor is sponsored by Pfizer Global Pharmaceuticals.

After receiving her masters in nursing, specializing in critical care, Wooldridge worked in various emergency and med-surg capacities. Lured by the challenges of working with older patients, she returned to school and earned another advanced degree as a gerontological nurse practitioner at Marquette University and later becoming a Fellow of the American Geriatric Society (AGS). In 1996, Wooldridge developed and implemented the Wellspring Innovative Solutions urinary incontinence best practices program in long-term care. She has published articles on normal aging, promoting social continence as well as her research in innovative technologies and treatments related to incontinence. In 2007 she wrote a chapter on genitourinary health in a textbook for the nurse practitioner in long-term care. As an independent nurse practitioner at Mercy Health Partners Bladder Control Clinic, in Muskegon, MI, Wooldridge continues her work of improving the life and aging process in her Western Michigan community while continuing to focus on the future and the next generation of advancements for those she serves.

Bernier began her career as a La Maze instructor in a United States Air Force base hospital in Japan. After working as an OB GYN staff nurse for nearly a decade, she became director of continence education at her clinic, in charge of pelvic floor rehab, subsequently becoming a national consultant lecturing both here and abroad. The Urologic Nursing has recognized her for her published research on pelvic floor rehabilitation for urinary incontinence and she has won SUNA's first place research award for her landmark study of urinary incontinence in survivors of sexual abuse. Last year Bernier completed her PhD from the University of Virginia.

Established in 2000 to recognize healthcare providers who serve as role models to others for outstanding contributions in research, education and clinical practice, NAFC's Continence Care Champion Award raises awareness among a variety of professional societies and elevates the importance of addressing incontinence. A listing of all past award recipients can be found on NAFC's website, in the Hall of Fame.