to not want to express milk in a room used for changing cathetas

[Fatas]

There alternative, suitable rooms available at my workplace. Was recently given a room to express, it is a large room, is secure and has a lockable door. There is a desk to sit at etc.

The room is used amongst other things for toileting; changing cathetas was mentioned, I am assuming it could be used for colostomy bags- but not sure on this one.

I really don't feel comfortable expressing for my little one in there, in fact I really feel it is inappropriate.

When I expressed concerns was told that the room was very clean and it was cleaned regularly.

@fivehundredguys- there's absolutely loads of suitable offices, which is a point I made earlier.

I am sure it will get resolved, eventually.'

It's catheters. Cathetas is not an actual word.
I'm a nurse so change catheters regularly. It's done in a clean environment unless you're a district nurse using an aseptic technique. The waste will be bagged in a yellow clinical bag and disposed of appropriately (your place of work should have a policy on this). After the procedure, the area will be wiped down and cleaned by the nurse who carried out the catheterization. I don't know how much cleaner you expect it to be.

Is this a carehome or hostel where the residents have their catheters and stoma bags changed in their bedrooms which are then emptied into their ensuite toilets and maybe one has a desk in it. Are you asking to use an empty clients bedroom, this just doesn't make any sense.

Fatas

I suspect your child will be in full time school before you get what you want.

Which pleases me, as you're so damned arrogant. You've basically been given a consultation room to express in. Its clean, regardless of catheters and stoma bags being fitted due to the contamination risk to those patients.

Its time limited as clinics have to run, regardless of your expressing schedule.

Get over yourself and perhaps address your issues regarding hygiene etc

Its not a care home- there are loads of suitable places to express. I have made that fairly clear. If places were limited, I would understand. But, they are not.

What is stopping you from using one of those rooms then?

Just ask for the room you want?????

My office is open plan, barring a few private offices which was glass fronted and for senior staff

It was the lav for me. Or quit my job or ask them to move 80 people to new facilities to find space to cater for me (who worked part time!!)

As it happened I fed last thing before leaving baby and the second I got in and all was fine. She was a year old by then though.

@TeddyIsaHe- my point exactly!

Not being given permission, not having a key.

Being told to use room which is used for changing catheters instead.

As I said, it will get resolved- before my child is five!

But why haven’t you been given permission? What was said to you when you were told to use the current room?

Sounds much more comfortable than the walk in cupboard I had when I first went back to work. It was the only room with a lock and a plug. No chair either so I sat on the floor.

Trade Union Reps spend a lot of time being horrified about precisely nothing, in my experience.

It’s called justifying their subs.

My office is open plan, barring a few private offices which was glass fronted grin and for senior staff

Sounds like the office where I am. People use a shower room for expressing: it's clean, private, spacious and they put a chair in there, and no-one's ever known of anyone actually using the shower in there.

A lot of us work out in the community though, which is much trickier. One of my colleagues used to express in her car, which was also used to transport her gun dogs, and distinctly smelly!

What reason have you been given for the reallocation to the room you are uncomfortable with? Can't you just say, "I would be a lot more comfortable in X room. Why was I moved?"

Changing Colostomy bags is often a more hygenic process than expressing breastmilk. You’re ignorant and hurtful OP.

I may be wrong but I'm assuming this is a pfb. If you have another child, op, your high standards of cleanliness will go out of the window . You'll be feeding dc1 out of date chicken nuggets which he's lobbed onto the floor. And he will be absolutely fine.

Catheter insertion is a sterile procedure not comparable to a toilet.

As a mum I can see your concern but a clean room has been provided with a chair and is private. The very basic needs of your request/what needs done.

Could the rooms being locked be private and have files in them you aren't allowed to view or something else?

Is the other room not available now more comfy that where you were given access now - not the first time I've seen woman complain about not having a swing hammock available for BF or expressing at a shopping centre etc.

I know we're not being funny... but on my first day back after MAT leave, suddenly realised that some inspired person made our whole school out of windows and I had failed to have a proper conversation about where to express. After brainstorming with my department I ventured off to the humanities cupboard... pumping away, door locked, reading a nice book about WW2. When unwitting and enthusiastic supply teacher comes barrelling through the door with someone's spare key!
I now know that I can whip a breast pump off and hide it in approximately 3 seconds (was terrified someone had given a student a key!!)

I now have a nice space... not lockable...but I have a sign before anyone calls the unions!

Is this some form of government/local authority//secure/hostel or drop in centre then, you haven't been given a key to this other room/office/consulting room because presumably it's private and not for unauthorised staff to use. I am guessing the room you have been offered is perfectly safe, private and clean but you just don't want to use it. I wouldn't expect access to private areas, other people's offices to express. If you think your workplace doesn't comply with current regulations then leave it to your union or ACAS to deal with on your behalf.

I really wouldn't be comfortable expressing in that room, I had a catheter removed (3 weeks after childbirth) in a room which sounds similar to the one you have described and just remembering back to what happened I am surprised at how many things the nurse touched before washing her hands. If she had told me to express after having it done I wouldn't have in there.

You clearly don't feel comfortable expressing in this room , this alone is good enough reason for you to be provided with a different room and by the sounds of things it wouldn't be too difficult.

Pengggwn

I have asked this question twice and OP has ignored me twice. I can only assume she has been given a reason but is refusing to accept it.

crispysausagerolls

That's one explanation. The other might be hairy-handed.

@Fatas - @PunkrockerGirl59 and I have both done our best to explain why changing a catheter is a very hygienic process. It HAS to be, otherwise the person with the catheter can get urinary infections - which pose a very real danger to such patients because they can cause irreparable kidney damage - and their risk is higher because of the catheter.

It is NOT toileting - very little urine is usually drained - if the person has a catheter all the time, urine is constantly draining into the bag (which will be emptied - in a toilet - before the catheter is changed - no-one is going to remove someone’s catheter without emptying the bag), so only a few ml will come out when the new catheter goes in, and this will be caught in a disposable kidney dish, and immediately disposed of in a proper clinical waste bag. Then the area should be properly cleaned - and cleaned to aseptic, clinical standards, which are pretty high.

Likewise, no-one will change a colostomy bag without emptying the old one first - again, in a toilet, not the clinical room, so there will be only a small amount of poo involved - which any half decent nurse/HCA will catch in gauze/tissue, and dispose of safely in a clinical waste bag. Then they will clean the area properly.

Frankly, somewhere that is being cleaned by a nurse or HCA is likely to be cleaner than a normal office, where people may be eating, drinking, sneezing, touching the surfaces after going to the loo and not washing their hands.

And germs cannot leap. Your expressing equipment would have to be in direct contact with a contaminated surface, or you would have to touch a contaminated surface and then touch your expressing equipment for there to be any real risk of contamination. As long as you wipe down the desk with antibacterial wipes, then wash your hands beforehand, and are careful handling the equipment (which you should be anyway) there should be very little risk at all. Nothing is ever totally without risk, but short of expressing in a totally sterile environment, having autoclave your boobs, this is as safe as you can get.

@firsttimebabybirther - the nurse who took out your catheter should have worn gloves to do so, and I would hope she removed them as soon as she had removed the catheter, and bagged them with the clinical waste, so whilst it was not optimum that she didn’t wash her hands at once, it is not like she took it out barehanded and then touched things without washing.