[LouisianaNurse2006]

Hi all,

We have to little Polar Care ice chest for our patients, which are very nice, but the ice melts too fast! We are constantly having to refill them.... any suggestions???? (Our ice machine puts out very fine ice... I think that is the main problem.) Any advice? I don't think they will get another ice machine for us .... they just bought the one we have.

[P_RN]

Is it a true polarcare? Is it the 300 (air driven/not so good/filter gets clogged) or the 500?

I believe you need to fill with ice to the mark and then fill to the next line with water. I hope I'm thinking about the right model here. Keep it above the wound. I liked to keep mine on the counter next to the lavatory and when getting I ce using a large paper grocery bag. That way you can dump, ice and water with out needing to move anything.

[ladywiththelamp]

Ive had patients tell me that when they got home with this device (sometimes they can rent them) the larger ice cubes did make a difference in how long it kept cold. Usually we have to fill them twice a shift; they're just a big pain in the neck. Now, our ice orders are 20 to 30 minutes of ice packs four times a day, esp. before and after therapy (like for Total Joints) It ends up we use ice more often than that, however. We've switched to the refrezeable bags, and have a dedicated freezer for them (cleaned with the spray that kills all life forms) They're pricey, and we'd keep losing them in the laundry (or pts. took them). Now our sewing dept. made us bright orange covers for them, which was fun to get and use. we wash the bags in the rehab's washer and dryer. Sometimes when we have to put one of our "busy" confused patients in a w/c by the desk, we give them the job of folding them!

[chadash]

Have an idea, might be possible. How bout freezing a block of ice slightly smaller than the cooler (insert a cylinder larger than the cylinder in the middle of the polar care thingey) drop that baby in, add water and wa la! Maybe we could patent some kind of polarcarecustumdesignedicecubetray.....

[RITA2007]

I just thought about how when you make home-made ice cream, they tell you to add salt to keep the ice more cold. It supposedly lowers the temperature. I wonder if that would work?
On secondhand, don't they tell you to sprinkle salt on the snow up north to melt it? I'm confused!

[Ms.Hobbes]

In my experience with Polar Cares...we used a lot in the surgery center that I worked at, was that they typically needed to have new ice and water at least every six hours. We always instructed our patients to expect that and that normal icemachines at home don't usually keep up so it was important to have extra ice on hand. I feel that they by far are better way of assisting with pain control and inflammation than ice bags ever could do.