Caring for Your Foley Catheter

Page 1 of 5

Contents What is a Foley catheter?

What is a Foley catheter?...... 1 A Foley catheter is a tube that drains pee (urine) from the bladder. Your doctor or nurse will tell you Basic care...... 2 why you have it and how long you may need it.

Choosing your bag...... 3 The Foley is held in your bladder by a small balloon Changing bags...... 4 filled with water. When it is time to remove it, we will remove the water from the balloon. Or we may Cleaning your bag...... 4 teach you how to remove the Foley at home.

When to call for help...... 5 Your clinic or nurse may change the tube regularly.

The Foley connects to tubing attached to a bag— either a large drainage bag or a smaller leg bag. Urine flows through the Foley into this bag. You will empty the bag regularly.

We will teach you how to care for the tube at home. If you have any questions, be sure to ask.

For informational purposes only. Not to replace the advice of your health care provider. Copyright © 1989, 2008. Fairview Health Services. All rights reserved. Clinically reviewed by Patient Learning Center. SMARTworks 435044 – REV 05/21. Page 2 of 5

Basic care Secure the tube to your upper thigh (to keep it from pulling out) Prevent infections Tape the tube to your upper thigh, leaving a little bit If germs enter the body, they may cause an infection. of slack. This will help prevent the tube from getting Germs can get in: pulled out by accident. • Where the tube enters your body Your nurse can show you how to secure the tube. • Where the tube connects to the bag Follow these steps:

• Through the drainage spout on the bag 1. Place a long piece of tape on your thigh. You may want to shave any hair from the area first. To reduce the risk of infection, follow all the steps in this booklet carefully. 2. Wrap another long piece of tape around the tube. Tape this to the first piece of tape. There should be Always begin by washing your hands for 15 seconds. enough slack in the tube to let you stand and walk Don’t touch the spout of the bag with your fingers. comfortably. Be sure the spout doesn’t touch the toilet. 3. Change the tape every 2 to 3 days, switching legs Clean the skin around the tube each day each time.

Clean the area around the tube each day. Use soap, You may ask your nurse or pharmacy about other water and a washcloth. products to help secure the tube to your leg (such as plastic or cloth Velcro straps). • Gently remove any crust or sticky material from the tube. Don’t move it too much, as this can Keep your bag and its tubing lower than cause pain, discomfort and infection. your bladder • Females: Wash the genital area front to back. Keep your bag and tubing below the bladder at all After pooping (having a bowel movement), wipe times. This will prevent urine from flowing back into backward and away from the tube. the bladder. • Males: If you have a foreskin, pull it back to clean To drain well, the bag needs to be the lowest part of around the tube. Then, return the foreskin to its the system. Any loops of tubing must be higher than normal place. If crust builds up around it during the bag. the day, repeat this process in the evening. • When using a leg bag, take the bag off your leg if • After cleaning yourself, clean the catheter with you lie down. Hang it over the edge of the bed or soap and water. Always wipe away from your body. couch. You may want to use a safety pin to secure • Rinse well to remove all the soap. the bag. Be careful not to poke the bag or tubing with the pin. Don’t use creams, powders or ointments on the skin around the tube. • At night, coil extra loops of tubing on the bed. Use a clip to hold the loops. Hang the bag on the Don’t take a tub bath while you have the tube. side of the bed, or place it on the floor in a bowl, Showers are OK. bucket or clean trash can. Page 3 of 5

Keep your tube from getting blocked If you will use a leg bag

Tips: Other people prefer to use a leg bag during the day and switch back to the larger bag at night. A leg bag • Empty the urine from your bag regularly. You gives you more freedom to move around. You can may want to empty it when the bag becomes keep the bag hidden under loose-fitting slacks or a half-full. long skirt.

• Check the tubing often for kinks that may block Because it’s a smaller bag, you will need to empty it the flow of urine. more often. Also, each time you change bags, germs • Drink plenty of liquids—at least 8 extra glasses can get into your body. of water each day (unless your doctor tells you To set up a new leg bag, follow the steps below. These not to). steps are for the Conveen leg bag. If you use another • If you will have the tube for a long time, it should brand, follow the directions on the package insert. be changed about every 3 to 6 weeks. Your doctor 1. Wash your hands for 15 seconds. Use soap and will tell you how often to have yourtube changed. water. Clean your work area with alcohol (or soap You may need to come back to the clinic, or your and water) and a paper towel. home care nurse will change your tube. 2. Place these items on your clean work area: • You doctor or nurse may teach you how to flush • Leg bag kit (opened) the tube, if it often gets plugged. • Clean scissors Choosing your bag • Alcohol pads

If you will only use the large bag 3. Button the leg straps through the top and bottom of the bag. Place the wide strap at the top of the Some people prefer to use the large drainage bag bag. You may trim the straps to fit your lower leg. night and day. This requires less time and effort— The bag will hang below your knee. and fewer supplies. It’s safer, too: You don’t need to change the bag as often, and this lowers the risk of infection.

• Change the bag every month. Also change it strap whenever it leaks.

• You may keep it in a shopping bag with handles button during the day. This lets you move around easily, and it keeps the bag and tubing lower than your bladder. Page 4 of 5

4. Close the drainage spout at the bottom of the bag. Cleaning your bag

5. Decide how long the bag’s tubing needs to be. It Urine drainage bags may be reused. Before you should reach below the knee. Allow a little slack reuse a bag, you must wash it with soap and rinse in the tubing, so you can walk and sit freely. If you it with cleaning solution. Clean the bag as soon as decide to shorten the tubing: you disconnect it from the tube. Don’t re-use a bag • Use an alcohol pad to clean your scissors well. without cleaning it first. • Use another alcohol pad to wipe the tubing. You should replace used bags with new ones every • Cut the tubing to the right size. Don’t let the 2 to 4 weeks to prevent infection. tip of the tubing touch anything. To clean a bag, follow these steps: 6. Insert the white spout into the bag’s tubing. 1. Clean your work area with alcohol (or soap and • Keep the gray cover on the large end. water) and a paper towel. Wash your hands with • Push the small end into the tubing. Once it’s in, soap and water. you can’t take it out again. 2. Place these items on your clean work area: Changing bags • Clean funnel

1. Wash your hands for 15 seconds. You may then • Liquid dish soap put on clean gloves, if you wish. • Cleaning solution (choose one): Ȥ 1/4 cup white vinegar + 3/4 cup water, or 2. Place a towel under the tubes to catch any drops Ȥ 15 ml (mililiters) bleach + 150 ml water. of urine. (If using bleach, mix a new batch each day.) 3. Use an alcohol pad to clean where the current bag • Clean paper towel connects with the tube. Wipe 3 times in a row. • Clean towel or storage container

4. Gently twist the tubes apart. Don’t use your nails. 3. Empty the urine from the bag into the toilet. (Nails often carry germs.) Squeeze the tube gently to keep urine from dripping out. 4. Fill the bag with cool tap water. A small funnel will help direct the stream of water. 5. Connect the tubing from the new bag to the bladder tube. Don’t touch the ends. Check that 5. Drain and fill the bag again, adding a couple of the tubes connect tightly. drops of dish soap. Gently squeeze the bag several times to clean the inside. Drain the water into the toilet. Rinse the bag well with tap water.

6. Fill the bag with your cleaning solution. Gently squeeze the bag several times. Ȥ For vinegar and water: Let it sit for 30 minutes. Ȥ For bleach and water: Let it sit for 30 seconds.

7. Empty the bag into the toilet. Page 5 of 5

8. Hang to air-dry with both ends pointing down. When to call for help Tips: Call your home care nurse or doctor’s office right • Pull the sides of the bag apart to speed drying. away if: • Don’t hang the bag or tubing over a radiator or other source of heat. This may lead to germs • Thetube comes out. (In this case, it must and infection. be replaced.)

• You may wish to use a wire hanger to hang • No urine drains through the tube, or there’s less the bag. urine than normal. • You may cover the end of the tubing with clean paper towel. Use a rubber band to hold the • Your urine looks bloody or cloudy, it has changed paper towel in place. color, or you see large blood clots.

9. After the bag and tubing have dried, store them in • Your urine has a bad odor. a clean towel or covered container. If you used a • You have pain in your back or lower belly area paper towel, you may remove it. (abdomen). • Before you re-use the bag, clean the end of the tubing with an alcohol pad. • You have a fever over 101°F (38.3°C). • Urine leaks around the tube for more than a day or 2.

• The skin around your tube is swollen, red, very tender or draining pus.

• You have swollen testicles.

Your tube may cause some pain or discomfort at first. Your pain should keep getting better with time. If it gets worse, doesn’t improve or cannot be controlled with pain medicine, see your doctor.

Phone numbers

______