North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood is calling on local authorities in North Wales to improve the provision of publicly available toilets to accommodate people living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) by increasing both the number of available toilets through direct procurement or creating a Community Toilet Scheme and public awareness of the toilets already available.
Mr Isherwood has written to the six local authorities on behalf of Crohn’s and Colitis UK, a charity which works with all those affected by IBD, in particular those suffering with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis, highlighting the crucial need for easy access to toilets for public use for those affected by these conditions.
He has also written to Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board about local services for those people diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
It is estimated that in Wales over 15,000 people are living with IBD.
Mr Isherwood said:
“For those living with IBD, debilitating symptoms like diarrhoea and tenesmus, a constant urge to have a bowel movement, can occur instantly and unpredictably so quick access to suitable toilet facilities is absolutely crucial either to prevent, or take action, should an accident occur in public.
“Understandably, these incapacitating symptoms are accompanied by a continuous anxiety about suddenly needing the toilet and having very little time to find one. Experiencing an episode of incontinence in public is profoundly embarrassing. For many individuals, the result is a devastating impact on their ability to engage in regular activities away from home such as going to work, shopping or socialising.
“Whilst local authorities here in North Wales do operate a number of public toilets with good quality information available via their websites, I’m aware that there is still reduced access to toilets in some areas and further work could be undertaken to increase awareness of the toilets that are already available.”
David Barker, Chief Executive of Crohn’s and Colitis UK said:
“For the thousands of people living with Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis across North Wales instant access to a publicly available toilet is not a nice to have facility but a must have. Symptoms of these debilitating lifelong conditions include chronic diarrhoea, an extreme urgency and frequency to use a toilet as well as severe cramping and pains in the abdomen and intense fatigue.
“Lack of access to public toilets means that everyday activities that most people enjoy and take for granted such as going to work, shopping or socialising can become impossible for people with these chronic conditions. This is why access to toilets is so essential and we are very grateful to Mark for raising this issue with local Councils.”
A Crohn’s and Colitis UK survey of 974 young people with IBD in 2007, revealed the extent to which isolation can be brought about by the need to be within easy reach of a toilet, combined with the symptoms of pain and tiredness. 43% of those who participated reported feeling seriously isolated at the time of their diagnosis. When asked for general comments about their lives and the impact their condition had on them, 246 young people with IBD stated that their disease made socialising almost impossible. 183 of these attributed this to “always needing to know the proximity of a toilet.”