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Discussion

Bathing for elderly

Hi. My mom has been in and out of the hospital since April 16th and it seems more than not a reoccurring UTI. She has been at an assisted living home for about three weeks and this time her UTI went septic. Before that it was a psych facility where she had three er visits.

Before April 16th she was sound of mind and driving and independent. No UTIs but once last year. We are new to all of this.

...

Before all of this she was taking a shower each day but only used soap every third day on her body and hair. At the Assisted Living home they went 6 days without bathing her this last time. Her hair was greasy and she smelled by day three. When I asked if they had bathed her they said they only do it once a week. Bed baths were not mentioned.

My question is this:

How often should they be bathing her? What's okay for her skin at 68?

I am going to start bathing her every two days via shower. Every four days with soap and shampoo.

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    Well... We don't give medical advice here on AN. That being said, in my experience, showers or bed baths are typically scheduled every 3 days for residents in the Long term care facilities I've worked in.

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    Thank you! I appreciate the help.

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    The assisted living I worked at was twice per week. Although the residents had the right to refuse. It was our job to try and compromise with them. For example, asking if a different time would be better or offering again the next day. Sometimes just doing a partial bath, face, armpits and bottom was more agreeable to the elderly. Sometimes one staff member vs another could get them to shower. We had to document all refusals though.

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