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Original poster

Take your pee home with you, please

79 replies

OhBuggerandArse · 19/04/2010 15:44

Have just had a midwife's appointment and she asked me to take my sample home with me to throw away as they're not allowed to do it themselves any more (because of Health and Safety? or something - I was too amazed to listen properly so I'm not quite sure what the reasoning was).

Has this happened to anyone else? Doesn''t it seem a bit mad? Won't everybody just drop their little bottles into the nearest public bin on the way out of the doctors, which you would think would be even more of a risk than keeping them all in the hazardous waste bin?

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Vistana · 19/04/2010 15:48

Sounds more like they are trying to save money on the yellow waste bags

waitingforbedtime · 19/04/2010 15:50

Our midwives throw the urine away but we get the same sample bottle to last us the entire pregnancy -

BexJ78 · 19/04/2010 15:52

yes, it happened to me. and was quite concerned about it leaking in my handbag! i thought it was just my MW too.....

Shaz10 · 19/04/2010 15:53

Will they let you pour it down their sink?

potplant · 19/04/2010 15:53

Can't you just throw it down the toilet in the clinic?

Habbibu · 19/04/2010 15:54

Don't have a problem with it - used to take it home, empty and wash and use for next time. But then I ended up having to post bottles of urine on a regular basis, so carried them round a lot...

Trafficcone · 19/04/2010 15:55

It wouldn't bother me but it's
not happened to me here. The mw tips the wee down the sink and bins the pot. I was shocked because in the 90's when I had my other kids they rinsed the pot and handed it back so we could reuse it. I used 1 pot per pg back then and with this one I've used about 8 so far.

hazeyjane · 19/04/2010 15:55

my mw throws it away and gives me a new tube each time.

thedollshouse · 19/04/2010 15:56

My midwife just pours it down the sink, I have seen her do it.

Original poster
OhBuggerandArse · 19/04/2010 15:59

Sink would make more sense. I'm just worried that I'll end up with loads of festering forgotten pots at the bottom of my handbag, which I'll then pull out in front of my boss when looking for a hankie. Or something.

OP posts:
EccentricaGallumbits · 19/04/2010 16:00

a sink full of mixed urine samples - then used to wash hands. nice.

gorionine · 19/04/2010 16:02

I would just poor it i n their toilet and bin the container there as well.

Never heard of using the same container for theentire pregnancy either. How bizzare.

Meglet · 19/04/2010 16:02

My midwifes always made me take it home with me. It did seem a bit silly.

It was left forgotten in the bottom of my huge handbag for several days on more than one occasion .

But the GP's always poured it down the sink then got me a new tube.

Meglet · 19/04/2010 16:03

....oh, yes, the midwives made me use the same tube the whole pregnancy. The GP's were happy to hand out new ones.

Shaz10 · 19/04/2010 16:04

EccentricaGallumbits I think you're allowed to rinse the bowl!

EccentricaGallumbits · 19/04/2010 16:08

it would still have wee splashed around it. which is why women are asked to take it home to put down their own loo.

and then rinsing the bottle out for next time saves money/landfill.

don't see the problem with it.

GPs don't have to concern themselves with justifying their budget nor are so au fait with infection control stuff (Sweeping GP judgement but is what appears to be the case)

legallyblond · 19/04/2010 17:07

I ALWAYS forget to bring a sample with me and it never matters - I just nip to the loo at the MW's and pee on the glucose/protein stick! Thankfully the MW disposes of the stick for me!

cardamomginger · 19/04/2010 17:15

This seems to be quite common and I think it's gross beyond gross! Where I am we get a new specimen container each time and the MW (whether in community or in hospital) disposes of the bottle in the yellow contaminated waste bin. In the hospital there's a special sink just for wee.

Haggisfish · 19/04/2010 18:19

it's not that gross! We have to take ours hme and reuse container as well. Nae bother just to pour wee down toilet (it is pretty much sterile when it comes out, you know!), and then rinse tube out.

beanlet · 19/04/2010 18:24

Ahhh. . . the postcode lottery in operation. My MW/GP gives me a new sample pot every time and they throw the old one away. It is, in fact, better not to reuse from the point of view of accuracy in testing, but because it doesn't matter that much some primary care trusts save money by making you reuse.

LittleSilver · 19/04/2010 18:55

Yes, I had to re-use. It was a point of pride with me that I actually used the same one for 2 pregnancies (smug recycler emoticon)

shesdrivingmecrazy · 19/04/2010 18:59

Two years ago the m/w made me take the pot of pee away (with wee in it) and re-use the pot.

This pg, same m/w, she chucks the pee and the pot then gives me a new pot.

No idea why it's changed.

Rockbird · 19/04/2010 19:05

I had to reuse as well and was given my wee back. Slightly grossed out at first till I realised that it was low down the list of gross things about being pg

Cosmosis · 19/04/2010 20:15

It's only wee! we use the same pot all the time as well, my mw empties it and gives it back to me, but taking it home wouldn't bother me either.

reikizen · 19/04/2010 20:23

Perfectly normal, I ask all the women who come to my clinics to do it when the GP surgery doesn't want it down the sink (which is where we wash our hands to clean them!)Plus, most women carry it to the appointment in their bag, so I'm not sure I see the problem with carrying it back again. You can then pour it down your own sink if you feel that is appropriate

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