catheter care

[YvonneLisa]

Hello. Im new to this site. I was online searching for information. I am a CNA in Texas. I work 2-10 pm at a nursing home and have several residents in my hall with foley. None of them have leg straps. The lvn in charge of my hall will not get me the leg straps or even the privacy bag that hangs on the bed to put the catheter bag in. But my main concern and question for all the real professional nurses out there....where do I hang the bag on the bed? For 18 months I have been hanging it on the side of the bed on the bed frame. So have the CNA`s from morning shift. So all of a sudden today the LVN tells me and my cna partner that the bags must be hung at the very edge of the bed and cannot touch floors but everyone is a fall risk since I work in the memory unit. I cannot remember what my nursing teacher told me in CNA training class. So..where do I hang the bag? I am very bothered with the fact that this LVN from graveyard shift is only asking us to do it but the other hall in the memory unit does not have to hang it at end of the bed...and all the other units in the nursing home dont hang the cath bag at end of the bed. Only my hall from 2-10 pm has to.... What do I do? The morning.shift handles the bags horribly but when I bring it up they get mad at me and do nothing. I have many concerns. This is just the first.

[thenightnurse456]

They should have leg straps or some sort of device that properly secures the catheter to the leg.. The privacy bag isn't a big deal.

Be careful when saying things like "the LVN won't let me get them privacy bags or leg straps". Does the facility even have this equipment? I doubt the nurse is refusing to let you use such equipment just to annoy you-it's most likely a budget issue. Keep in mind this isn't a hospital, LTC is a completely different animal often with much more limited resources then a hospital.

That being said it's good that you are advocating for your patients, CNAs in LTC are the nurses' eyes and ears.

Good luck! :)

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

The bag needs to hang lower than the pt/resident. Urine backflowing from the bag/tubing into their bladder is a HUGE risk for UTIs. We hang them on the bed frame, and if we have to raise the bag (for turning or whatnot) we always empty it first. It can never, ever touch the floor; the floor's really really filthy.

We use a Stat Lock which is an adhesive device w/ a clip--sticks to the pt's thigh, and holds the tubing to keep it from getting pulled on, also reducing the risk of infection (and pain of course!) Leg straps do the same thing. Does your facility not stock them? Or does this particular nurse just not like them? I would approach your DON about this. You could even do a simple Google search on "catheter associated urinary tract infections" and go, armed w/ some good info on preventing them.

For privacy, you can put the bag in a pillow case and tie the ends just below the plastic hanger. That's what we do for fecal bags (I work in an ICU where most pts are tube fed, so have liquid stools); as you can imagine, it's not good for someone's dignity to have a bag of poo hanging for all their family, friends, and clergy to see.

Good for you, advocating for your residents the way you are!

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Refer to your organization's policy & procedure for specifics. You can never go wrong with this.