Tools To Help An Elderly Person With Toileting
Introduction
Many elderly people are becoming more obese. This increases the risk of various health problems like limited mobility, urinary tract infections, and constipation. These problems can lead to limited mobility, which has a domino effect on other functions like walking and bathing. As a result, many elderly people today are overprescribed medications for constipation that often only provide temporary relief without addressing the underlying cause. Toileting aids can help reverse these issues by reducing strain on the muscles in the back and buttocks to allow presbyopic elderly individuals who have difficulty bending or reaching to sit upright to use them as needed during toileting activities without hurting themselves or requiring assistance from others.
Every person, no matter how old, has the right to pee. Sometimes, an elderly person may have difficulty with toileting. This article offers helpful tips that might help you care for an elderly person who is having trouble with toileting. Some of these tips can be done at home or in a nursing home. Others are for doctors or staff members at health centers or hospitals to do when they are caring for an elderly person with toileting difficulties. The tools listed here include easy coaching strategies and simple staff training materials that can make life easier for family caregivers and patients alike.
Tools To Help An Elderly Person With Toileting
1. Slip-On Seat Pads
Commonly used in institutional settings. During the course of a shift, staff may change between sitting and standing at odd times. The slip-on seat pad can be easily removed whenever staff are sitting down. The pad can be stored in a cabinet or under the desk where the chair is stored when not in use.
2. A Plastic Or Cloth Sling
Inexpensive, can be left on the toilet seat by the end of each shift, and comes in different height adjustments to fit different chairs or toilet seats.
3. An Adjustable Height Toilet Stool
Designed to prevent painful bending at the waist to sit on a toilet seat that is too short or too low for your elderly client’s legs to rest comfortably on it’s surface.
4. Toilet Safety Frame
An open-air frame that is portable and lightweight. It’s commonly used in hospitals and nursing homes to keep patients stable when sitting down on a toilet, especially for those with bad backs or other problems that prevent them from bending over the toilet bowl.
5. The Pull-Up Bar Latches To The Underside Of The Toilet Seat
It’s always within reach of the elderly person’s arms, even after they’ve used it to sit up.
6. A Pilling Plastic Cup
Can be attached to bathtub faucets or shower heads for easy access when bathing an elderly person who is having trouble with toileting because he/she can not bend far enough forward to reach the sink faucet.
7. Toilet Seat Riser
Used to raise toilet seats so elderly people can sit down without hurting their knees, hips or backs.
8. The Retainer Ring
Attaches to the toilet seat and gives elderly people a place to rest either a hand for balance or a cane when sitting on a toilet seat.
9. A Strap
Used to help older people sit better on the toilet by putting it around the back of the toilet bowl for support.
10. A Padded Undergarment
Worn inside other underwear or pants to help support an elderly person while sitting on the toilet, especially if she has fallen and hurt her tailbone in the past and can not balance well while sitting down anymore.
11. Auto-Opening Toilet Seat Covers
Used to help elderly people get up from the toilet. This is especially helpful for people who are not able to raise their legs high enough to sit comfortably upright on the toilet, or for those with bad backs.
12. The Toilet Handle Cover
Used to prevent the elderly person’s skin from getting pinched between metal rings while sitting down on the toilet bowl.
13. Securing Bars Are Safety Bars
Can be attached either inside or outside of toilets so elderly people can hold onto them when they sit down so they do not fall off the seat and injure themselves while sitting.
14. Urinals For Women
Used to help women to easily sit down and get up from a toilet seat without falling onto the floor.
15. Non-Slip Sandbags
Used to fill up the space around a toilet seat so it won’t wobble while sitting on it. They can be purchased individually or in bulk for use by several elderly people when handling messages, collecting bottles, using the bathroom at home, or when needed at home or in a nursing home.
16. The Extra Large Bow
lAvailable in different colored patterns and is made of rubber and plastic tubing that connects to the toilet bowl and holds water in it while an elderly person sits down on it to prevent leaks when they relieve themselves.
17. Side Rail Supports
Used to keep elderly people from falling off the side of a bathtub while bathing. The supports can be installed in the bathtub or shower, and come in different sizes that fit over different size bathtubs or showers.
18. The Urinal Catheter System
Is available for men and women over 65 years old to prevent accidents and help prevent urinary tract infections by reducing pressure and irritation on an elderly person’s bladder and urethra. There are several different types of catheters but the most common one is a flexible urinary catheter with an indwelling catheter or U-tube that is inserted through the urethra into the bladder through a small incision (about 1 cm).
19. Grab Bars
Grab bars vary in shape and size according to toilet type, so they are available to fit any toilet. Grab bars have a wide, flat surface on which an elderly person can be safely supported when he/she sits down on a toilet seat to prevent falling off. Grab bars can be purchased individually or in a roll which has a variety of different sizes and shapes that fit different toilets.
20. A Curling Up Pad
Is used for elderly people who have difficulty getting out of bed or sitting back into it after getting up from the toilet without hurting their backs or knees.
Conclusion
The above-mentioned features and accessories can be used to help an elderly person who is having trouble with toileting. They can be installed in the bathroom, and kept under the bed or in a nearby cabinet or closet where they can be easily found and used when needed by an elderly person.
Fewer falls during toileting are less likely to result in injury, which is an important factor in reducing care costs. Cost factors are another benefit of using this system. The cost of falls resulting in injury added up to almost $2 billion for 2006, according to the U.S Commerce Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.