Midwife told me to reuse urine pot due to shortages

[igotbills]

Has anyone else been told this? I was given a pot to takeaway from my booking appointment with the instructions to sterilise at home and reuse when I need to bring in future urine samples.

I may be a bit embarrassed as it's my first pregnancy but it also has to be first morning urine meaning it's going to look dehydrated when I pass it over (sorry for that image) but is this something you just get over? 🤣

And I suppose they just empty it and pass it back for me to pop in my handbag!

Because disinfecting costs money and there is none and for the purpose of the pot disinfecting isn't needed. It's just testing for sugar and protein so a waste of money to spend money on expensive disinfecting systems

That’s an often quoted myth! Once it’s left the bladder it easily becomes contaminated on its way out, and it may well be infected in the bladder anyway.

My SIL used an empty miniature whiskey bottle for her sample. Her handbag containing it was stolen. I imagine the thief got a nice surprise!

Hopefully not in the kitchen sink!

Op, when they hand back the pot, empty or full, just use the nearest to empty or rinse. No need to panic over hygiene
When at home use a clean tub/whatever you have and pour boiling water over it - leaving it for a little while. That's it!

Really glad NHS is doing something like this. The reason for not sterilising in hospitals is because it would require a separate room, special machinery, energy use, staffing etc..vs asking an individual to do their own. No brainer

Really? I’m a midwife and locally we’ve been getting the women to reuse their pots since 15 years ago to save money. We don’t tell them to sterilise the pots. Just rinse out.

Yeah, she told me to use my kettle. Whether it does need sterilising vs being washed out with soap etc I really don't mind at all - I'd just rather it be done at the hospital and not put the pot straight back into my handbag which I'll probably need to take to work

(totally get my opinion on this is against the grain)

I was once asked to just bring my urine with me in ‘something from home’ as they don’t give out pots anymore and they don’t allow people to use the toilet at the GP surgery. The best I could find was an out of date sprinkles container

I had the same pot for whole pregnancy, didn’t think anything of it. You’re literally going to be covered in blood/fluids during Labour and postpartum, plus baby poo and sick

Just keep it in a sandwich bag

I was told to do this over a decade ago. Must better for the environment as it’s really wasteful otherwise.

I was just about to come on here to say this! I’m not a midwife but a health care worker and I think there has been a miscommunication between midwife and @igotbills . If something truly needed sterilising no patient would be expected to do it at home as there needs to be standardised equipment to make sure it was sterile. Midwife probably meant just wash it out so that there’s not stagnant urine from last time in the pot the next time you go to do a sample - and boiling water is a reasonable way of doing that - like you would with a mooncup.

I have say I’ve never head of reusing the pots but thjnk it’s a great idea. The amount of plastic waste the nhs makes is absolutely shocking. If you think about how many pregnant women use the nhs and how many urine samples they would be required to give, and the cost of washing all the pots so they could be reused - that’s your answer OP for why you’ve been asked to wash out your own urine pot - it’s cheaper, less hassle and more sustainable - although I appreciate you thought you were being asked to sterilise / disinfect it - which if you were was an error

I thought from the title that they were giving you a pot that someone else had used. What on earth is embarrassing about giving urine samples whether or not you’ve sterilised the pot that you’ve previously used?

An empty freezer bag or similar is a useful way to transport these pots @igotbills

Totally get that, but I'll be allowed to wash it off at the hospital which is the difference

Id just like to wash the pot at the hospital rather than wait hours for it to go stale

I think that in time you will look back on this and really wonder how you made this into such an issue.

The embarrassed comment wasn't about the sterilising or reusing pots, but rather that it has to be first morning urine (so bright yellow, and potentially sat in the pot for several hours)

Now this is something that's silly! Totally get that and it was just a lighthearted comment asking do you just get over it.

Ive done urine samples before but they were 'fresh' done at the place, and I was hydrated

However in regards to putting the used pot straight back in my bag, still think it's grim

I used to use a body shop shampoo bottle, one of the little ones 🤣. Also had a surgery that just dipped and gave you your pot back so I had to empty it in the toilets on the way out.

OP just rinse the pot in the toilets at the clinic?

there‘ll likely be a sink in the MW room or you can go into the toilet to rinse. Take a sandwich bag and pop it in.

i know some of the comments have upset you. I mean this kindly as I wish someone had said the to me: There are likely going to be many moments when you feel you’ve lost your dignity in the coming months (yes there may be poo during the birthing process, yes there will be random breastmilk leaks, blood and wee). I wish I’d spent more time working on accepting that and trying to find strategies to cope with feeling like I wasn’t fully in control of my body or bodily functions.

your pregnancy will be easier if you care less about this sort of thing.

Indeed, a little pot of piss is nothing compared to the joys you have to come OP🤣

.

This is quite normal, more to reduce the huge plastic waste if anything, don’t think necessary to sterilise the bottle as such, just rinse it out. However I’m sure they wouldn’t mind giving you a new pot each time if you asked. P.s. can just empty it out in the toilet on the way out of the surgery if not wanting to carry it home

I mean… it’s YOUR pee. I don’t see the issue. It sits inside of you as we speak!

Think it is ridiculous when they don’t give you anything or let you use the toilets! What do they do for women who have forgotten their sample?