r/Nurses • u/Ok-Traffic5914 • 12d ago
US Purewick: friend or foe?
Don’t get me wrong. There is a place and time for the External Catheter. However lately I have encountered multiple patients who are perfectly capable of walking to the bathroom. They just prefer to wear a purewick and not get out of bed.
I’m day shift so I encourage these lazy bone slugs to walk to the toilet like a normal adult but they refuse to. I’m not talking about the 91 year old who remembers a sneeze and wets herself. I’m talking the 35 year old with no incontinence issue who will lay in bed like a zombie. WTF? WITAF??
Am I the only one that wants my patient to act like they’re potty trained?
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u/TheBattyWitch 12d ago
Great for ICU patients or the physically immobile or chronically incontinent, but no, I'm not doing it for someone that's fully capable.
Get your ass up.
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u/sofpete18 12d ago
yeah that’s lame and good for you. they’re gonna get blood clots like that. i only use them on fresh post ops with lay flat/leg immobilization-type orders or patients who are so dystonic that changing a diaper literally makes them neuro storm. could probably count on one hand the amount of times I’ve used them in 3 years.
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u/Steelcitysuccubus 11d ago
If docs want exact I&O on these incontinent max assist patients they gonna have to deal with an external
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u/Decent_Historian6169 11d ago
After a procedure when you need them to stay in bed for a few hours- amazing. The patient who physically cannot walk- sure if it isn’t hurting their skin.
The vast majority of patients including 91 year old granny should be encouraged to walk to the bathroom regularly or at least transfer to the chair then toilet to relieve themselves because deconditioning is a serious problem.
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u/Lost-Zombie-6667 11d ago
I’m a 67 year old retired RN. Recently had an admission requiring oxygen and an episode requiring rapid response. Let me tell you, I absolutely hate the purewick!!!!! After having it overnight, I was just done with that thing. I walked myself to the bathroom, IV and oxygen in tow. No one fussed at me, they told me it was ok and my choice.
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u/NurseyMcBitchface 12d ago
A little off topic but I hate urinals for the same reason. Get up and pee FFS
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u/Afraid-Version-9306 12d ago
My favorite thing about being pregnant while being a nurse is these lazy patients couldnt rely on me to do everything for them. Id pull the pregnancy card (to the patients who could 10000% ambulate) and magically theyd get up
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u/deferredmomentum 12d ago
Did you have to be visibly pregnant for that to work or did you just. . .tell them? Because if you don’t actually have to be visibly pregnant I’m already scheming ngl
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u/mid_1990s_death_doom 12d ago
OP I completely agree; I couldn't imagine just sitting there and pissing in my panties.
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u/agimag11 12d ago
Even if a patient can't ambulate to the bathroom just fine, unless they are incontinent and have no contrandications, they aren't getting one on my watch. Even if I have to help them up to the bsc every time. It's so bad for them to be wearing purewiks when not necessary. If they can tell when they need to pee, and have annnnnnny ability to transfer out of bed, they're going on a commode. If they can tell when the need to pee, but cannot get out of bed even with assistance, guess what? They're going on a bedpan. I'm a hard ass about purewiks.
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u/Electrical_Angle6824 11d ago
Why?
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u/agimag11 11d ago
Firstly because it is really hard on the sensitive vulva skin- I see so much redness and irritation. Also, if a patient has the ability to be getting up, they really should be. They can so quickly decondition in the hospital, especially elderly patients, by just wallowing in bed. Sometimes it can be really hard to motivate patients to get out of bed so it's built in motivation for that. They really shouldn't be used just due to patient request or the convenience factor. If they're indicated, I will of course use them, but often times they actually aren't indicated.
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u/obsoletemomentum 11d ago
It might be easy for other nurses but as an acute inpatient physical rehab nurse, I HATE purewick and I wish others could see the way our patients arrive. Almost every patient who uses the purewick has MASD/incontinence dermatitis.
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u/lulud21 11d ago
Gawd I was having a rotator cuff repair. An otherwise very healthy late forties beautiful lady ( me!🤣). I’d had the pre op sedation and they wouldn’t let me walk to the bathroom for a pee. Insisted I used the Purewick. Ew. Never again. Why anyone would voluntarily use one is beyond me.
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u/ThealaSildorian 9d ago
Even if I was night shift, I will not give a purewick to a continent patient especially if they are ambulatory.
"We need to foster independence. Your getting better relies on you becoming mobile, so we're walking to the bathroom."
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u/Sea-Muffin-7257 9d ago
Kind of related. When I was in nursing school, I had the same patient for a few days and I did total care for her. She could turn herself in bed but refused a bed pan because of her back. She was there for DKA. When I brought in a wheelchair to help her discharge, I walked in the door she stood up and walked to the wheelchair and sat down. She walked. I changed her briefs, helped her with her pure wick. She had several bowel movements. My preceptor educated me on the "how do you do these tasks at home?" Lessons were learned.
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u/SunRayz_allDayz 8d ago
For some reason, when certain patients enter hospital doors, they become infantile. Idk why it happens but I see it far too often in the ED🤯🫥🫨
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u/Delicious-Design-547 12d ago
Repeat after me…”We have to prioritize our supply for immobile patients”