permitting a patient to urinate in bed versus holding it in

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NURSING POST

I'm wondering if any of you have any thoughts on the following situation:

A bedridden female geriatric patient, while undergoing a lab test, has an intense urge to urinate and insists she cannot wait. The lab tech, who is physically not capable of lifting the patient, calls for another tech to bring a bed pan. The nurse urges the patient to wait for the bed pan to arrive, but the patient continues to say that she cannot wait and needs to urinate at that very moment. Finally the first lab tech reassures the patient that if she absolutely cannot wait, she should not be ashamed if she needs to urinate in the bed, the staff will clean the bed. This is a lesser evil situation; what would be the best approach? Are there any nursing standards or articles that might shed some light on this question? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Just a question - but why is it every time somebody poses a question, it's automatically assumed the poster is fishing for answers to school questions? I've got to say, it's been awhile since I was in school (coming up on 30 years), but half the time they don't sound like any questions I was ever asked to answer. Why not just answer the posters question or remain silent? I don't 'get it'.

I used to feel the same way and then I realized I was doing their home work!! When I went to school I wish I had a place I could type my homework and ge th answers. I wonder if they think we are foolish or what???

The thing that clues me in is the formality of the writing no grammatical errors os spelling errors (big clue!)....

"A female geriactric patient has complained of pain..blah, blah, blah...what would you do?" and followed with....do you have the article,references,books,ethics,ect to back it up????......a dead give away........:lol2:.

But....I have told people to urinate in the bed and I would clean them up later.........like during a CT for a suspected abdominal aneurysm and they have to pee NOW and they WON"T SIT STILL!!!! but I have the strong suspicion there is a real problem and I need that test.......Pee now , clean later! is my motto......;)

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My thinking is why didn't someone toilet the patient before transporting them? Prevention is preferable.

Now, I *know*, based on your stated amount of work experience, that you have certainly had the pts (whom I seem to have every shift), who refuse to use the bathroom because they "don't need to go now" only to have that same pt call 10 minutes later, telling you over the call light to "hurry because I have to go RIGHT NOW, REAL BAD."

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"back when i was an emt it would sometimes take a long time for us to extricate a patient and transport them to the hospital. if the patient was immobilized (c-collar, ked and longboard), we would let them pee into a large trauma dressing that would absorb quite a bit while covering them with a blanket. this gave them much-needed relief with minimal embarrassment. you do what you have to do in an emergency. still, it's not a good thing to do as a habit."

if you take a wilderness first aid or first responder course we teach the same thing, only since you don't have a rig full of dressing supplies, you use the injured person's tee shirt or such. first rule: it's your fault you got hurt and we have to rescue you, so we use your gear first. :clown:

i agree about the student postings though. it's probably grist for a whole 'nother thread, but on another professional list i'm on and on the late, lamented old aol student homework helper community we always said we're happy to help out a student but we will not do your homework for you. if you come to us and say, " i have this assignment that's giving me trouble. i did this, looked up reference x that said abc, but reference y said def, and z says pgmloo, and i don't know what to think. can you help me out?" this tells us 1) that students still know how to do actual research and don't expect that pushing "enter" on the computer will automatically give them the definitive answer to the meaning of life, and 2) it's always good to reinforce searching behavior-- students who become new grads have to keep learning. but if you just say something like, "i have to learn about nursing specialty x, tell me about it. (sic)" (i actually had one of those in those exact words) then we are going to gently deflect you towards the library with a reminder to come back when you can tell us what you know already. "nothing" is not the answer unless you can tell us where you looked, good-faith effort and all that.

why? how many of you have had lazy coworkers? this is laziness. if not willful laziness, then at least sloppy habits that need to be nipped in the bud before they show up on your unit.

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Specializes in Correctional, QA, Geriatrics.
Now, I *know*, based on your stated amount of work experience, that you have certainly had the pts (whom I seem to have every shift), who refuse to use the bathroom because they "don't need to go now" only to have that same pt call 10 minutes later, telling you over the call light to "hurry because I have to go RIGHT NOW, REAL BAD."

Yes, of course I have had those patients. However most folks will consider using the bathroom if they know they are going to be going somewhere. And, of course, I am aware of those patients with irritable voiding/bladder issues and the suddeness of needing to void right now. The OP didn't say that the patient had that particular issue. My point in posting was to give a different perspective of trying to think ahead and perhaps prevent a possible problem. That way the patient is not put into a situation of having to void in their bedding.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

Just like my kids.......everybody go to the bathroom because I am NOT stopping 5 min down the road.......Ok so we stop 5 min down the road......LOL

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