District nurses catheter

[Flyhigher]

84 year old FIL. Might need a catheter.
He can't do it himself. Will district nurses come four times a day? Has anyone had this with their parents ? He's not super flexible and very uncoordinated. Any advice?

You'll be surprised what people can suddenly manage to do OP when they have to pay.
This is what their savings are for.
Ex DN of many years.

He can drink relatively safely. He will drop water down himself. And laugh. I'd have to send a video. But yes, maybe when they have to pay £500 a week then they might learn.
He cannot tie Velcro on. Simply can't do it hour a lot of demonstrating. I think he is autistic and dyspraxic.

As a DN...the answer would be no we simply do not have capacity, district nurses are severely understaffed and too many patients on the caseload.
Is your father housebound? In the ideal world we only visit housebound patients.
Catheter can be fitted and your dad will be taught/explained how to empty the bag...does dad have carers/live with anyone that can help?

I think you need to stop diagnosing your FIL with disorders you clearly don't understand and get him some practical help. Contact adult social services. Speak to care agencies. Speak to the discharge team and the OT's at the hospital.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/family/looking-after-people/carers-help-and-support/#:~:text=Contact%20the%20social%20services%20department,a%20carer's%20assessment%20for%20you.

Op- Like others have said- how have they coped so far??? Do they currently have carers?

I'm a retired nurse and I have to echo what everyone else has said: emptying a urine bag is incredibly easy.
Also - how have your parents survived thus far in their lives without permanent live-in care?

If your dad is incoherent and tearful he may have a UTI.

Please can everyone give me the benefit of the doubt. That in theory it's easy yes . In practice my 84 FIL. Cannot use Velcro. Or aim a valve into a vessel.

He will be able to open a catheter flip Flo valve . I think. Aiming it properly he will take time.

Not sure about washing himself with all the cables in.

Do the discharge teams work on weekends?

@TheShellBeach They pay people to hang pictures. They cook. But can't do much else. Can change a light bulb. He's deteriorated a lot.

I m also a nurse. The valves on the flip flo are very easy to push unlike some of the leg bag valves. If his aim is rubbish I would get him a bucket, otherwise he will have no choice but to pay for a carer to come in and empty it. I think you need to stop panicking and see how it pans out.

The only reason I have mentioned disorders is that people seem unable to believe he can't do things. I say he can't. MN debates. So I give a reason. I think he has some issues (whatever they are) that mean he can't do things others can.

As I say. A flip Flo catheter valve might be possible.

@JamieJ93 do you know under what conditions you can have a flip flo? If you retain urine at 400ml on a TWOC can you still have catheter valve.

He should be able to, he is catheterised so he is not going to retain urine. Once he opens the valve he should just let it drain totally and his bladder will empty. I think you should keep advocating for your dad as you are doing so far and push for the flip flo. He will struggle a lot less without a cumbersome leg bag if he has issues with dexterity. The worst thing that could happen is he forgets to shut it off and leaks a bit of wee, so nothing major.

catheter valve as an alternative to leg bag A lot cheaper than £26 each - about £20 for five.

But talk to social services. It doesn’t sound as if they are able to cope. Don’t keep trying to solve this yourself, bring in people who will have seen this before

@Frazzledandfried have you dealt with this yourself or seen it? He has to remember to get the urge to wee. I guess.

I'm a nurse so have looked after many people with one. With a flip flo he will still get the urge to wee because the wee stays in his bladder rather than going into a bag outside his body. When people have a catheter with a bag, sometimes they do lose that sensation of needing a wee because it just drains freely into the bag so the bladder is never full.

Thanks everyone. This week. After three weeks of panicking they have managed to begin emptying the bag themselves. Still not good with Velcro. But even Velcro they begin to manage.
Yes to a previous poster. It's amazing what they can start to do once at home and then faced with a £530 bill each week.

So glad it is working out for you OP .

Well I'm glad to see this update!

Had flip flo fitted today. Let's see how that works out. Looking more positive though.

You need to apply for attendance allowance
Possibly for both of them