NG canisters:Do you empty at change of shift?

MelissaRN · May 25, 2004

We don't use gel but we basically do what you do. Only empty them when they are full. Don't have any articles to support that this is the best practice, just one of those old paradigms.
Don't you love it when the NG is d/c and the drainage just stays there for days. I'll pick up a new patient and in report nothing about an NG, but this half full container is on the wall. Come to find the NG has been d/c three days ago. :)

That's dayum gross :uhoh3: I always 86 the cannister right when I d/c the tube. I had a patient that wanted to save the tube so he could show his friends what was in him. There was no way I was cleaning that puppy for him so he could have something to show the guys. I tossed it and gave him a clean one and put tape to where it was in him. :rolleyes:

SCRN1 · May 25, 2004

We also have disposable. They are marked at the end of each shift & charted.

prmenrs, RN · May 25, 2004

If I had a baby on NG drainage, I always emptied that Luken's trap when I was I and O'g.

Just love babies. smaller messes. [snicker, snicker]

capnnikkiRN · Jul 20, 2007

In all the places I have worked, we have always marked the canister and once the canister was full, we would make sure it was sealed and dispose of it in a red box. I have never opened a canister and empties fluid at the end of the shift. One place I worked at had this stuff we put in the canister through one of the holes up top and it turned the fluids into a gel.

I think it puts us at risk for exposure to fluid. I also think it would be cheaper to replace the canister, then to have to pay for the supplies for me to use gloves, gowns, and eye protection to prevent an exposure from fluid splashing.

JennaRN1006 · Jul 20, 2007

At my facility, we simply mark the canister at the end of shift and record the measurement. We are not allowed to empty it down the sink or toilet. proper waste managment is to place the canister (either a full one or after its been d/c'd) in a red biohazard bag and place in the soiled utility room. our waste management people will dispose of properly.

They are looking into a powder or gel, that is placed in a fresh canister that allows the contents to soldify/coagulate, so that no one is handling gastric contents, ie, reducing exposure.

Do you mark the NG canister with the time and date at the end of your shift or do you empty the entire canister and put it back? Seems to me this emptying of the canister is only opening you up to chances of exposure.
If you do mark the canister as opposed to empyting it, can you offer me any magazine articles/studies that would support this, so I can take it to management? Thanks

bethin · Jul 22, 2007

At the end of each 8 hour shift we mark the line with a piece of tape with date, time and initials on it. Night shift empties at the end of their shift.

If the NG is pulling alot out of a pt and it looks iffy if it will last another 2 shifts I will empty it and let incoming shifts know so they can monitor it.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Jul 22, 2007

Not sure why this is a big issue....? My facility (as well as several others in my area) have us mark the level of fluid on the tape that runs the length of the cannister, at the end of each shift. We report on the amount of fluid drained per shift. When the cannister gets about 3/4 full or so, we get rid of it and put up a new one.

The cannisters are taken off the walls (a cumbersome job, actually) and there's a small cap that pops open on the top into which we dump the powder that turns the fluid into a gel. It's not "opening" the cannister per se, but we are absolutely not allowed to dump the cannister with the LIQUID as is into the red bags. For the safety of housekeeping workers, the fluid must be 'gelled' first.

Aside from there being no reason to empty a cannister every eight hours if it's not producing much fluid, I'd be willing to say it's a waste of resources: a new cannister, two bottles of gelling powder, for every shift, regardless of need? Seems rather wasteful to me. It's not the same as emptying a foley, where there is no replacement of a medical resource (you're not changing the bag, just pouring off fluid, right?). With these cannisters and gelling powders, even though they are disposable, why use several times more than you need for no actual reason?

EmmaG, RN · Jul 22, 2007

We did the same, except they stopped using the gel. There was a concern about staff inhaling the powder (it did kinda *poof* up when opened and poured). Instead, they went to using large red containers that were already double lined with red bags, then we'd bag the stuff and dump in there. The red trash containers were then emptied without anyone actually having to touch the stuff.

TazziRN, RN · Jul 22, 2007

Just love babies. smaller messes. [snicker, snicker]

oramar · Jul 22, 2007

We have the cannisters that are hooked to the wall. We mark them at the end of each shift and when they are full take out the inner cannister and put a new one in. We have this special gel stuff we put in them to help solidify all the nasty stuff.

:yeahthat:I can remember when cannisters were emptied into the sewage sytem and then replaced. However, it has been years since that was done. Now it is turned into a solid and placed in a red bag for incineration.

icie rn, ADN, RN · Jul 22, 2007

Policy changes in many institutions do not require the nurse to empty a container at the end of the shift as long as she has a total of the output.

suzanne4, RN · Jul 22, 2007

Please note that this thread was started more than three years ago. Things have changed in many facilities since that time.