Pubic hair

[nurseJLoo]

My female patient wants me to shave her pubic hair, she cant do it herself she only has limited movement of one arm . Should I do it? (I would rather not) any advice? Update-this is a LTC Vent patient who is not going home. Believe it or not this isn't the first patient that asked me to do this I had another patient with ALS ask me to trim hers with an electric razor because she said the hair gets caught in her underwear and pulls. I had got "pulled" to her unit and she asked me to do it -had her own electric razor-so me like a fool assuming the nurses were doing it for her went ahead and did it then i found out that only a few people would do it for her. What do I look like? the personal pube trimmer? also she was a real pain in the butt about how it was trimmed, I dont want to relive that nightmare!

[Ms.Sip]

You should be able to find a salon that has someone who will come to your facility or her home to do it.

It's true. My mother, who was a CNA for thirty some years, makes a good chunk of her living by working with clients in the hospital, HHC, oncology, etc. by providing "salon services," including shaving/waxing... Maybe it's an emerging market...

[adnstudent2007]

I've been reading through these postings and I've noticed alot of you have said that you'd ask a family member to do it. I'm just wondering , wouldn't that be a HIPPA violation unless you asked the patient permission to ask them first? It seams to me some people would be more embarassed to ask a family member than a health care professional.

[leslie :-D]

I'm just wondering , wouldn't that be a HIPPA violation unless you asked the patient permission to ask them first? It seams to me some people would be more embarassed to ask a family member than a health care professional.

i think it would indeed be a hipaa violation if a nurse asked the family member.

and a family member is the last person i would ask! ugh!! :trout:

leslie

[weirdRN, RN]

Give her a bottle of "Nair" for pubic hair, it only takes one hand to rub on and one to rinse off....

:roll....:roll....:roll....

[mitchsmom]

I think this falls under the "call a professional" category. I wouldn't give a patient a perm, either KWIM?

If I were the pt in that situation, I wouldn't ask/expect a nurse to do it - does the Golden Rule work here?

I also certainly as Hades wouldn't want a family member to do it though!! I would wait, get a pro, or grow it out, yep.

[RNMISTY362b]

JUST SAY NO!

[cinRN95]

I definitely would not do this for a patient. However, there are salons that will send someone to a home or a nursing facility to do waxing. You may want to suggest to her family that they look into this for her.

[scarta105]

I wouldn't have a problem doing it for a patient if that is what made them more comfortable. The OP said that the patient wanted it done because the hair became tangled in her underware and pulled and I know how uncomfortable this can be. I don't think that there is anything that I would refuse to do for any of my patients (legally and ethically speaking) if it meant making them more comfortable. I'm sure that if they could do it themselves, they would. This is a very personal thing, and I really don't think that someone would ask for help doing this if they didn't really need it. Inserting a catheter is more invasive and personal than simply shaving the pubic area (at least I don't have to ask a female patient to "spread" their legs to do it).

[cinRN95]

After mulling this over, I think I might get some of that surgical hair remover they use for GYN OR and use that. I dont think I would shave someone because I can't even shave myself without nicking. But nurses do this for patients pre-op all the time. The surgical hair remover works pretty quickly and generally does not cause a lot of inflammation to the area. It is probably a matter of dignity to this patient and how embarassing for her to have to ask someone for help with this. I don't see the harm in using hair remover.

[firstyearstudent]

I don't think I'd shave a patient, but I'd offer to buzz it off short with clippers if it was a comfort issue and they were in long-term care. With clipping/buzziing it you wouldn't run the risk of nicking, and wouldn't cause ingrown hairs. (Not to give too too much information, but I do this myself...)

[firstyearstudent]

i'm not understanding this statement.

i do understand upkeeping underarms, legs, face if it bothers the pt. and so, that would be preserving their dignity by acknowledging any self-consciousness.

but grooming/shaving pubic hair, would be more an issue of vanity. if you want to preserve their dignity, ensure that they're covered as much as possible.

leslie

Why is shaving underarms, legs, face, etc., a matter of dignity and shaving pubic hair a matter of vanity. It is all vanity to me. Dignity comes from within.

Also, I would refuse to shave someone's face for aesthetic reasons before I would refuse to shave someone's pubic area for comfort reasons...

[travduck, BSN, RN, CNM]

Nope,, tell her she will have to wait for discharge and find a good salon that will do waxing. Not in the job description.

I had a patient (18) that was trying to refuse to leave after discharge until someone shaved her legs for her. Not gonna happen hun. Get your mommy to do it for you.

Get real!!! shaving pubic hair is no different than shaving chest hair, anal hair, axillary hair, or scotal hair. Any nurse that works in OB or GYN or Surgery is called on to shave pubic and labial hair often. It comes with your diploma.

If you are uncomfortable taking TOTAL care of this dependent, NOT GOING HOME, patient, then, as you would with any other procedure that makes you uncomfortable or poses a liability risk, ask another nurse to assist with you and verify the patient wishes.