A Guide On Changing Your Ostomy Appliance

One may have had an ostomy in the past few days. If you are one of them, you really must wear the appliance on it every time. There would be times that you will get frustrated with it. There will also be times that it makes you feel itchy.

In this article, you would be guided on what to do. You will be guided on the steps on how to change your ostomy appliance. Doing this will also help maintain the skin around your stoma healthy.

Before you start, you must have all of the materials you will be needing ready. One needs to prepare clean water, some gauze strips and paper towels. You also have to prepare a new bag. It should already be pre cut. One has to have to old one disposed so it would be better to have all necessary things ready.

Remove your shirt. Insert the paper towel between the skin and your underwear. It would help you change the bags in a neat way. It would avoid having dirt on your underwear and skin when you change it.

As you get rid of the old one, hold down your skin with your hand. Pull it away so your stoma would be uncovered completely. Throw it away on your trash can. Be certain that there is a trash can near you when you replace it so throwing it away would only be one reach away. It is best to have the hair around shaved. This would aid in making your bag stick well. It will also lessen the pain when you are pealing it off.

Soak the gauze strips in the water and wipe the skin. Pay attention to the ones which surrounds it. Wipe the stoma until it is clean. Dry it with using the paper towel. It is best to use that one since it can absorb well. It also does not stick to the skin.

You could use a lotion recommended for it. It would help lessen the sore. But, it would hinder the appliance from sticking well. Place the new one. Make sure it would stick well. You can use your palms to make sure of that.

It is best to replace it early in the morning. At this period, the stoma is still small though it is still active. People who have this do it at this time. The times you should be changing it depend on the supplies and its behavior. There are times you should change that on the next day. There are times you should change it daily. If that is expensive, have that done during the morning.

You should ask for the assistance of your doctor so you could take care of it in a better way. Doctors could recommend the best type of appliance for you. They could recommend stuff to lessen pain as you are replacing it. Before you change it, check if your hands are clean. If you check it, you could prevent some infections.

Read more about How To Change An Ostomy Appliance.

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