SIX months after its launch, BINS4Blokes is gaining momentum, but the Continence Foundation of Australia is calling on more regions and city venues to support the initiative.
The campaign - which launched nationally in June, calls on communities to support men who live with incontinence by installing sanitary bins in male public toilets.
In Australia, there are 1.34 million boys and men living with urinary or faecal incontinence.
Continence Foundation of Australia chief executive Rowan Cockerell said adding disposal bins to public toilets would help incontinent men live and work with confidence.
"Our aim is to make all Australians aware how common incontinence is in men of all ages, and our hope is to get bins into public toilets Australia-wide," he said.
While the initiative is still lacking widespread support, a number of regions in Western Australia are lending support to the campaign.
Mandurah has agreed to trial the bins in five different locations, after a member presented a petition to National Seniors Australia's Peel regional branch. The branch approached Mandurah Council and councilors were happy to support the initiative.
Wanneroo is also currently looking at trialing the bins in up to 28 locations.
In a huge boost to the campaign, the WACA Ground in Perth has become the first stadium in Australia to install BINS4Blokes.
In Victoria, the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre has become the first major venue to join the campaign, installing permanent bins in eight of its male toilets.
A study of Australian men with urinary incontinence found:
- 50 per cent avoided situations where they could not access a toilet easily
- 57 per cent intentionally kept accidents secret from those close to them
- 27 per cent said they stayed home as a precautionary measure
BINS4Blokes supporter Greg Ryan was born with a rare congenital condition known as Imperforate Anus or Anorectal Malformation.
Greg has lived with faecal incontinence all his life and is passionate about raising awareness and understanding of incontinence.
"The BINS4Blokes campaign will impact and change the daily lives of males of all ages who have had to deal with incontinence, mostly in secret," he said.
"I know BINS4Blokes will be a life changer for me!"