uk princesses..catheter on return??

I have just read a previous post about coming home with the catheter still in. Am i right that this isnt commonplace in uk? From what I can understand we generally stay in hospital till about day 6 so maybe this is why???
Any one have any answers?
Alison

Hello from Berkshire UK!

I had a TAH on 16 Dec 04.

I had a cathater in when I awoke and a drain in my stomach.
The cathater was removed two days after surgery and the drain three (you have to lug it around with you - the original "bring a bottle").

I was told at pre op clinic that I would only have to go home with a cathater if my bladder was damaged due to previous endo and lazer treatment causing scaring and "sticking bits together". If my bladder was damaged then that would be repaired at the same time as the hysterectomy.

The op was Thursday and I went home Monday, earlier than I thought. I did not feel ready to go, but had done the all important pee, fart and poop.......................

Hope this helps and good luck!!
x

Hi there
Thanks for your reply, could youlet me know a little more about the guidelines for when to leave hospital as i have 4 kds the youngest is only 8 months and I was hoping to stay as long as poss.
Thanks
Alison

Hi Alison,

UK patients do get a longer stay in Hospital which I think helps us in the long run.

They like you to pee on your own, they measure your output for the first 12 hours to make sure you are passing enough urine. So when the Cath is removed try and wait for about an hour (if you can) 100ml/200ml is a good start. So you need to keep your fluid intake up to keep the output going. the clearer the urine the better.
They only leave the cath in if there is bladder damage or you have problems with urine retention, with the retention, they tend to keep you a couple of days longer to see if the problem clears up before you go home.

Gas, don't try to force it out. let them know when you do. It lets them know your bowels are awake and ready to take up thier old job.

BM, let them know if you can't go (don't expect too much the first couple of days) If you have trouble going do tell them so that they can give you something to get the old bowels moving or you could end up needing an enima (I waited too long and normal laxitives didn't work on me)

It dose depend on the Hospital and your Dr as to what requirements they want your body to perform before you get to escape

You must not be running a temp, and they like you to be eating and moving around (as much as you are able)

4 to 5 days is average time in Hosp for the UK ladies, but they will keep you in if you need longer.



Hope this helps.