Bedpan? Why not a Poise pad?

Nurses General Nursing

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I work on a med/surge unit and all day long, men can lay in perfect comfort to urinate in a convenient urinal. But WOMEN with horrible injuries have to be rolled to the side in extreme pain then have to sit on a bedpan and basically pee all over themselves anyway. We even put paper chucks on TOP of the bed pans because the bedpan just sticks to their skin and we cant get it out especially with heavy women. For a women to pee, we easily will use 2 full chucks and if a drop of urine makes it way on to the sheets, we have to do a bed change too.

Please tell me why we just dont hand them a Poise pad or even a toddler's pampers diaper to urinate easily, cleanly and comfortably? I have used both in emergency situations and they work AMAZING!!! Why O why are we still using bedpans for women?!?!?!

Specializes in Oncology.
That's really great. I would imagine that if you needed two extra people to keep your patient positioned to ensure a sterile insertion, that happens too. Places I've worked didn't make it possible to get extra help for placement, and we couldn't ensure sterility. Always bugged me.

Yeah, it stinks when your facility doesn't provide the resources you need to provide the level of quality your patients deserve.

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Oh no, I am not saying give them one then just walk away like putting them in a diaper and letting them lay in it, that is insane. I am thinking more like this... There ARE female urinals, but when you have to be flat gravity is your enemy and the urine doesnt flow down and stay down. Like a modification of the urinal that could hold a pad or even absorbent crystals preventing it from backflowing.

Seriously, I am OCD when it comes to cleanliness of patients and making sure they are as comfortable, clean and dry as possible. I only tried asking this board because I have had 2 patients this week ask for something other than a bedpan and I came into a room where a mother DID use her visiting baby's diaper to pee in and we laughed that it was kinda a good idea.

and lastly, wow... really quick to attack, I was under the impression that asking a simple question I would get some ideas from experienced nurses... Maybe I should just look someplace else. :(

Try to invent the device you are envisioning. Make lots of money from the invention and you won't have to worry about the rudenes here, which I agree with you is present in some responses.

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I work in an ED with no aids so we get this fun problem all the time, the biggest thing i try to do (and quick disclaimer i am HORRIBLE at placing bed pans appropriately...) is get a chucks under them, get them on the bed pan, then actually place a diaper between thier legs in front of the bed pan and sit them up as much as possible. Side note, i often make jokes with the patient about my bad aim or just want to make sure we dont get splash back so we dont get your pants wet etc. it usually puts the pt at ease, takes the reduces the feelings of indignity and helps them feel more comfortable on the pan. The sitting up can also help them feel like they are in a more natural positon. I do the same w my supine pts, minus the sitting up part. It really is amazing how far it can go to make jokes or take the pressure off the patient. As to the original intention of the post, it is miserable to pee as a girl... Just do your best and remember talking w the pt can go a long way. I've even set my pivot pts up on a bed pan on a chair w a chucks under it for those that can stand but cant or shouldnt do more than stans and pivot... Instant bedside commodes...

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In response to NOADLS....Haha came up as the first option for me!

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There is no pad that will hold the amount of urine without spilling. The urine will also make contact with the skin and harm the skin, and decrease the skin integrity. It's hard to shower the person properly as well, so the urine will burn burn burn that skin. Furthermore, it's demeaning and embarrassing to pee in bed, on a pad.
no less on a bed pan, and some of the larger diapers would work.
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Specializes in Orthopedics, Pediatrics.

With all the wonderful advances in medical technology we are still using bedpans? Bedpans have been around for what? At least a few hundred years?

When our hospital recently started using Curos caps to sanitize and protect IV ports we all laughed about how rich the inventor must be who invented the simple cure for dirty IV ports.

Think how rich you could be if you invent a more comfortable, cost effective, dignified and sanitary solution that replaces bedpans!

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Specializes in Med/Surg, OR, Peds, Patient Education.

When my husband was hospitalized, recently, the unit was very short staffed, so I stayed and cared for him. The wonderful RNs who were assigned to that unit felt that soon they would be asked to wear diapers, instead of taking a BR break. Perhaps, with staffing issues becoming worse, in many hospitals, the situation you mentioned may just come to pass.

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I have had a female patient who was completely capable of using a male urinal, she was pretty mobile though. I think we should test out the female urinal more and get the shape right. My own 9 year old daughter is capable of pushing her pelvis out and Standing at the toilet like a boy to urinate. Maybe we've just been tricked into thinking we need a bedpan.

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Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
I have had a female patient who was completely capable of using a male urinal, she was pretty mobile though. I think we should test out the female urinal more and get the shape right. My own 9 year old daughter is capable of pushing her pelvis out and Standing at the toilet like a boy to urinate. Maybe we've just been tricked into thinking we need a bedpan.

....or a member....

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Specializes in Oncology.
I have had a female patient who was completely capable of using a male urinal, she was pretty mobile though. I think we should test out the female urinal more and get the shape right. My own 9 year old daughter is capable of pushing her pelvis out and Standing at the toilet like a boy to urinate. Maybe we've just been tricked into thinking we need a bedpan.

I'm confident your urinal using patient and your 9 year old daughter are thinner and far less "blubberful" down there than I or our average adult patient.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, OR, Peds, Patient Education.

I've been retired for ten years, but my husband was recently hospitalized. Staffing was dangerously low, so I stayed with my husband and gave him most of his care. This particular hospital wanted to use as many disposable items as possible. The commode they gave him had a pink washbasin in place of the usual bucket. Not only was the washbasin inadequate for someone who had been drinking a colon prep, but it fit so snugly that it needed to be removed from the commode with a jerking motion. You can probably picture the result. Needless to say, he did not use the commode, and I assisted him, so that he could use the bathroom. Fortunately, his room mate did not need to use the BR with any frequency.

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Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.

A washpan in place of a bucket in a BSC? HA! I had a 97 y.o. male patient upon whose anatomy gravity took it's force, and he had to have an extra-DEEP bucket for dangling room; the shallower ones did nothing but support his testes....upon which he did not want to pee! The first time he tried to use a 'regular' bucket, he told me he couldn't use it, but wouldn't say why. Finally, he said..."Well, it's just sitting there, like it's on a shelf.'"​ When I still didn't understand, he just showed me what the problem was; he started laughing, and then I started laughing. Not something easily explained when we were asked "What's so funny?"

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