What type of care is required for the catheter, bag(s), and patient during the time the catheter is worn?

  1. He came home with 2 cath bags–a big one for most of the time and overnight, and a leg bag, for getting dressed.  The bag is supposed to be kept below the bladder.  My husband just carried the big one around with him and then hooked it on to whatever was near him when he sat down.  At night, he hooked it to the mattress frame.
  2. He only put on the leg bag when he got up to take his daily walk. He ended up having an allergic reaction to the latex leg bands and it raised welts on his thigh.  We used a lot of powder after he showered each day.
  3. We were concerned about spilling the urine when changing the bags, so he would shower with the big bag on, then would change it out to the small leg bag, while still in the shower.  That way, any spillage could be rinsed away.  I always helped with the changing of the small bag back to the big bag, when he came home.  He has big, clumsy fingers, and it was easier for me.
  4. I figured out a better way of dealing with the catheter bag than pinning it to my pants and having its weight pulling my pants down.  I took two belts and attached them to make a big loop.  I looped the catheter  bag handle through the belts and wore it like a bandolier.  They teased me about my macho looking bandito ammo belt running diagonally across my chest.  The belt loop sat on my left shoulder and ran down into my right pants leg where it held the bag. It was way more comfy this and more discreet than pinning it to my pants leg.
  5. You should also have Vaseline and some sterile swabs, like big q-tips for him to apply the Vaseline to the head of the penis and the catheter tube after washing both with soapy water every night. Keeps down the chance of infection and keeps the tube moving smoothly in the top of the penis.
  6. Some people are more comfortable wearing medical-style gloves when working with the cath bags.  I never had a problem with spilling or getting it on me.
  7. Silk/nylon/rayon boxer shorts for the period you have the catheter.
  8. For the first several nights, my wife got up once during the night to check on how full the bag was. She would empty it into a bucket and dump and rinse it in the bathroom so I wouldn’t