Sadly, as your loved one ages or becomes ill, they will need more assistance with many daily tasks and that includes using the toilet. Relatives of patients at a hospice and palliative care facility in Los Angeles, such as Faith and Hope Hospice and Palliative Care, may feel a little intimidated at first when they hear they have to help their loved one use the restroom, but hospice Pasadena believes if you tackle it with a matter-of-fact demeanor, you and your loved one can get through it a lot easier.
How Do You Prepare Your Home?
As you start to notice that your loved one needs more help, you may start to feel overwhelmed. Fortunately, Faith and Hope Hospice and Palliative Care, a Los Angeles hospice, has some tips to help you set up your home to safely meet their requirements. These are some of the things that will be very useful when you help an adult with toileting:
- Handrails close to the toilet
- A removable raised toilet seat
- A commode, bedpan, or urinal
- Waterproof mattress pads
- Incontinence pads and briefs
Also, hospice and palliative care professionals in Los Angeles recommend that you learn your loved one’s routine to give yourself lots of time to help them move to the bathroom or commode without hurrying them along. You should make regular trips to the bathroom every few hours throughout the day, particularly after your loved one has eaten a meal. Make sure you wash your hands before and after helping him or her at the restroom and wear gloves when doing so.
How Do You Help An Adult Use A Toilet Or A Commode?
Staff members of hospice and palliative care centers in Los Angeles always advise family caregivers to keep safety as their number one priority when they are helping their loved ones with toileting. Your loved one should try their best to get into the most ideal position possible. Try to avoid lifting them or having them pull on you since this could increase the risk of injury to you as well as your loved one. So, rather than doing that, put your hands on your hips and waist to keep stability. Bend your knees as they sit down or lift themselves back up, and do not pull on their arms.
Also, it is good to keep in mind that whenever you are helping an adult with toileting, you should have patience and keep an easy-going and down-to-earth attitude. Plus, it is important to have good communication because it is helpful through this process, so make certain you talk to them as they move through the steps.
When you have to take your loved one to the toilet, walk slowly together to the bathroom or commode. When they get near to it, ask your loved one to turn around, so the toilet is right behind them. Let them place their hands on your forearms and slowly lower themselves to the toilet seat.
You may have to give extra support by passing them toilet paper or wet wipes to clean themselves or by doing the cleaning yourself. Afterward, make sure they have cleaned their hands.
When they have done their business and are ready to get up, have them move forward a little bit and put their hands back on your forearms before they lift themselves up. Keep your hands on your waist and bend your knees.
How To Help Someone Use A Bedpan?
Perhaps your loved one is experiencing some difficulty getting out of bed. This may call for your help in using a bedpan. Start by making sure their privacy is protected by closing doors or curtains. Also, inform them that you are going to help them with the bedpan.
If they are lying on an adjustable bed, raise the top of the bed, so your loved one’s head and back are raised. However, if it is not an adjustable bed, make them sit up or help them sit up. Add pillows to support them, so their back stays in an upright position. Also, make sure to place a towel over their lap, so they keep their decorum.
If the patient can lift up, slide an incontinence pad underneath them to get any spills. Rearrange their clothing as needed Then, as you support their lower back, slide the bedpan underneath them.
However, if they can’t lift up, roll them onto their side and fix their clothing. Then slide the incontinence pad and bedpan into place and roll them back onto the bedpan.
When finished, make them lift up, so you can slide the bedpan out while supporting their lower back. If they can’t lift themselves up, roll them back onto the side to slide the bedpan out.
Once the bedpan is out from underneath them, cover it with a towel or an incontinence pad and place it off to the side where it can’t be knocked over. Then clean your loved one with toilet paper or wet wipes. Then dry them carefully.
Afterward, help them get back into a comfortable position and make sure they are covered with a sheet. Then wash their hands. You can do this by using a tub of warm soapy water, or you can use wet wipes.
Put their clothing back into place and make sure they are all nice and cozy in the bed.
Make sure to empty the bedpan immediately after you have got your loved one settled again and wash it in very hot water to sterilize it. Dry it and bring it back to a convenient place where it is easily accessible.
Although getting used to providing and receiving this kind of help takes some time to get accustomed to, keeping your loved one with a positive attitude will make the entire process a much happier and less stressful one.
