Dad, who lives in a MC facility, has been wearing permanent foley catheter for little over 2 years now. In late 2024, he forcibly pulled it out. It was bloody and traumatic; the balloon on the tip of the pulled out foley was still intact! I am sure it was super painful and thought he would never do it again. But, within this past week, he pulled it out twice! This time around, the balloon was deflated and less bloody. Has anyone whose LO/PWD have the same issue? How do you resolve it?
Get him a hospice evaluation stat as they may have other ideas for you and remedies for incontinence.
Good luck to you.
Dementia patients eventually get to the point where they don't understand what things are for. If they're uncomfortable, they want them off. My DH has tried to eat his eyeglasses and his hearing aids. He may have succeeded eating a hearing aid because it's never been found even though it should have been trackable through its app on my phone. If they have dentures, they may pull them out and even throw them away or try to gift them to someone such as an aide.
Certainly you should discuss your dad's catheter issue with his care team and invite their input on the best way to handle it.
My father had to have one the last 3 years of his life or he could not void urine at all . A lot of people are not aware that there are medical conditions where this can happen . My neighbor also has to have a foley for the rest of his life due to his inability to void.
I agree though to check with the doctor about whether or not the foley is in fact necessary.
Options would be to place him in Skilled Nursing, hopefully they would have a closer eye on him.
Using anti strip clothing so that he can not get access to the cath.
Mittens would make it more difficult for him to grasp but mittens may be considered a restraint and are not legal.
Is there a medical reason he has a catheter and is not using disposable briefs? If not then have the catheter removed and they can begin changing him when he is wet and they should also be taking him to the toilet.
All of your input tells me what I dread; there is no sure way to prevent him from pulling it out and hurting himself.
Again, thank you all.
Minor procedure where a tube is inserted into the bladder in the lower abdomen.
I think it could be secured so he would be less likely to pull it out.
There is always the risk of a person with dementia pulling out any "tube" but maybe this would be less obvious to him.
Have you considered hospice?
Thank you for your response. I do appreciate it.
So far, Dad does not qualify for hospice -- no weight loss, no broken/crack/fracture bones, no persistent fever, no signs of pain -- without these, his doctor won't be ordering hospice. Having said that, if Dad continues to forcibly remove his foley causing irreversible harm or sepsis or something then we will definitely have that hospice discussion.
He needs to be in adult diapers. And the MC he is in may not manage incontinence care for an adult in diapers. That means he would need to move to a different level of care.
See All Answers