[debbyed]

When we lived in West Virginia, on my days off from the ER I sometimes filled in a the small community nursing home my husband worked at. We used absorbent cloth pads with our patients and the turn Q2hr was strickly adhered to. During the 2 years I was there we had less that a 1% skin breakdown in our patients. I didn't think that was that unusual because the hospital I worked at was also small town/ community and the other nursing homes were just as well run. Heck, the only diapers we had in the hospital were for the infants and they were cloth also.

When we moved to the Baltimore area boy was I in for a shock. Almost every patient we get from nursing homes in the area are wearing disposible diapers and most of them have terrible looking skin. My husband had gotten a job at a nursing home that was said to be a "Good" one. They put disposible diapers on all incontient patients and were very slack about turning them. He has since moved on to another field because I couldn't stand the lack of TLC.

[huganaide]

I have to agree with Debbyed on the issue of pads. Two thumbs up from me. I am a CNA and work in LTC facilities. The lack of TLC has caused me to switch jobs 3x in the last 2 yrs. I am now at a facility that uses NO disposible 'chux' nor briefs and they have absolutely NO skin breakdowns. By using a cloth pad it seems to ensure that the pt is turned and changed q2hr. It is very important to remember that not only do you change the pad but some soap and water is also needed. A&D does wonders as a barrier. So facilites seem to do things out of convience, Sorry but that is wrong. (just my opinion) Convience should NEVER come before quality of care. I wear my title of CNA very proudly and that will never be compromised for convience.

Teresa

[Cindy_A]

I work in LTC, and we use pads, which I think are better than diapers. We do use diapers however on those pts who have been given a laxative or suppository, because some of them like to use their feces as "fingerpaint"!