National Hydration Campaign

The Scottish Urinary Tract Infection Network’s (SUTIN) national hydration campaign was launched in April 2018.

The aim of the hydration campaign is to raise awareness of the wide and varied benefits of being well hydrated. The target audiences are:

• The general public across Scotland, particularly vulnerable groups such as the elderly
• Staff across health and social care and home care sectors.

The campaign aims to ensure everyone is aware of the signs of poor hydration and the potential consequences.

The problems associated with dehydration are still poorly recognised by not only the public but also those working in community and health care settings.

Dehydration can be both the cause and the consequence of illness and can have significant impacts on an individual’s health.

The key campaign messages are:

• Good hydration is important for all age groups and is something for everyone to consider
• The affects of dehydration may result in unnecessary treatment e.g. of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and unnecessary admission to healthcare e.g. following falls resulting in fractures.
• Secondary E coli bloodstream infections caused by UTI are potentially life threatening, particularly in older people.

Resources

Information resources have been developed to support the hydration campaign and are available to order from the Public Health Resource Directory or can be downloaded here:

• Hydration Record Card Glasses - Aide Memoir
• Dehydration Leaflet
• Adult Dehydration Poster
• Toddler Dehydration Poster
• Urine Colours poster