Consumer Advisory Committee

Advocate for consumers living with incontinence

Jacinta Crickmore is a passionate advocate for people living with incontinence, drawing on both her professional background and personal lived experience. Based in Queensland, Jacinta first became aware of the challenges faced by consumers while working in healthcare sales with SCA Hygiene. Her role gave her valuable insight into the needs of individuals managing continence issues and sparked a long-standing commitment to improving support and outcomes in this space.

Jacinta has held several leadership roles within Continence Health Australia, including serving on the Queensland Branch, chairing the Consumer Advisory Committee, and representing consumers on both the national Board and the Bladder and Bowel Collaborative Steering Committee.

As someone with lived experience of incontinence and as a carer for a family member, Jacinta brings deep empathy and understanding to her advocacy work. She is dedicated to ensuring that the voices of consumers are heard in policy and service design and is committed to driving meaningful change in how continence care is delivered across Australia.

Consumer advocate and continence nurse consultant

Based in Brisbane, Audrey brings extensive experience in community health nursing, aged care and continence care. As a continence nurse practitioner (now retired) and passionate consumer advocate, she has dedicated her career to promoting continence awareness and improving the management of incontinence.

Audrey’s advocacy is deeply personal – she has witnessed the impact of incontinence firsthand through caring for family members and others. Her mission is to break down the stigma surrounding incontinence and empower individuals to seek support from healthcare professionals.

Her professional interests include health promotion, consumer education, resource development and advancing health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Counsellor, author, advocate, birth trauma consultant

Leanne runs a private counselling practice in Diamond Creek, Victoria, and is a dedicated advocate for women’s health, birth injuries and birth trauma, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). She actively contributes as a consumer representative at Northern Health.

Leanne is the author of the children’s book ‘When Mummy Went to Hospital’, proudly illustrated by her children, Connor and Molly. Her advocacy is deeply personal – following a catastrophic birth injury in 2011, she underwent six surgeries including the placement and later reversal of an ileostomy bag, spending over 50 days in and out of hospital. This experience left her with bowel incontinence for several years.

Today, Leanne shares her story as a guest speaker at hospitals, universities and professional development panels. She also consults with maternity services and provides consumer input to represent the voices of mothers and babies in healthcare settings.

Prostate cancer survivor, consumer representative, radio presenter, multiple Ironman triathlon and marathon finisher

Ashley is a prostate cancer survivor, community volunteer and health and wellbeing advocate. With a senior management background, he has worked with Boards, government and regulatory bodies and brings deep experience in risk, safety, emergency management, cybersecurity and quality systems. He has also operated his own promotions, marketing and consultancy business.

Since retiring in 2023 to focus on his health, Ashley has remained committed to fitness and consumer advocacy. He contributes to research projects and support groups, including the Box Hill Prostate Cancer Support Group, and volunteers as a community radio presenter.

Following prostate surgery in 2023, Ashley managed a range of post-treatment effects including incontinence. He now maintains good continence with occasional minor issues. He continues a regular exercise routine and ongoing medical monitoring. Ashley brings a positive outlook and a strong desire to support others facing similar challenges.

Advocate for continence care and education

Dr Kathryn Sloots is a registered nurse with a science degree and PhD, bringing over 18 years of experience in bowel and bladder continence care. Her work spans clinical practice, research and education, with a focus on anorectal biofeedback, urodynamics and improving continence outcomes.

Incontinence has had a significant impact on Kathryn’s own life and that of many of her patients, as well as her own family and friends. This personal connection fuels her passion for preventing incontinence, improving treatment options and reducing the stigma that still surrounds these conditions.

Kathryn has published widely and presented at national conferences, advocating for greater awareness and improved access to continence services. She has also contributed to national leadership through her role on the Continence Health Australia Board. Passionate about prevention, education and research, Kathryn is committed to advancing continence care for both health professionals and the broader community.

Men’s health advocate, author, prostate cancer survivor

Following his prostate cancer diagnosis, Alan experienced continence challenges and actively sought the assistance and support of a continence physiotherapist to manage them. Through a series of lifestyle changes, he has successfully achieved good continence health.

Alan made history as the first Australian consumer to present at the 2023 Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC) conference held in Nara, Japan. Following the completion of the ‘Navigate’ clinical trial, he remains actively engaged with the Navigate website team and the possible future access by the community.

In addition to his advocacy work, Alan had led the Bayside-Kingston Prostate Cancer Support Group for the last 15 years, with his wife, Fiona, who has taken on the role of treasurer for the last 3 years. They provide support to others affected by prostate cancer and run their website called ‘The Prostate Zone’.

Advocate for young people with chronic illness and incontinence

Christin Young, 29, is based in Sydney NSW, and grew up in Wollongong. During her teenage years, she began experiencing undiagnosed and untreatable incontinence, alongside the onset of symptoms later identified as paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia (PKD), a rare neurological condition. Due to the complexity of her chronic illnesses, it took several years before she was able to access specialist care and begin managing her condition.

Navigating these challenges throughout high school gave Christin valuable insight into how the education system can better support young people living with chronic illness, particularly in relation to mental health and identity. Today, she is a strong advocate for reducing stigma around incontinence among young people in Australian and is committed to driving change in how the medical community supports young people with these conditions.