Weighing adult diapers for output monitoring

[jastudent]

Anyone have any experience with weighing adult diapers to capture output for output monitoring? Our unit wants to start doing this and I want to see if there's any suggested practices for this. What is the process in your unit? How are you all able to disinfect the diaper scale? How many scales do you have on the unit?

[smf0903]

We have one scale on our unit. It’s not terribly often that we weigh briefs. We have a little chart by the scale that gives the dry weight of each size of brief. The scale is in our trash/biohazard room so I usually throw the brief in a small plastic bag and take it there to weigh. I wipe the scale down with the sani-wipes and/or bleach wipe.

[CalicoKitty, BSN, MSN, RN]

Our hospital has gotten rid of briefs because they greatly increase the risk of pressure ulcers/injuries. I figure you could weigh chux or other pads, too. Just hope you catch them before they overflow and on the sheets. Never did it, but, I figure sani wipes would be fine.

[wildrosesRN, BSN]

The unit I did my peds rotation on had one scale for 8 newborns/peds under 3 years old. They kept a clean stash of the various diapers on a shelf underneath the scale so we could weigh the dirty one first, sanitize the scale, then weigh the clean correct size of diaper and subtract the difference.

[dreamerachiever, BSN, RN]

I work in PICU, we have scales in each room.