Soiled Pyjamas.

[Tilly2]

My dad has been in hospital for two weeks and for the first week and a half was wearing hospital gowns and pyjamas. Twice, this week, he was wearing his own pyjamas.
When I went today, he was back to wearing just a gown. As i left it occured to me that his own pyjamas might need washing so I went to his bedside cupboard and found them, via the smell, stuffed inside a plastic bag.

I brought them home, donned some rubber gloves and put them in the washing machine along with loads of disinfectant and biological powder.

Is it common practice to leave soiled nightwear in bedside cabinets? Should I complain? It can't be right, surely.

Any experience of this anyone?

[shaneystar2]

When Mr S was in hospital and coming to terms with his stoma he had plenty of soiled clothing ,towels etc and I made sure there was a plentiful supply of plastic bags for him to put said stuff into ,which I then took home on a daily basis to wash .
I certainly didn't expect the nursing staff to run about after me telling me there was stuff needing washing .

[corylus]

Apologies but I can't believe that I'm spending Saturday evening on this thread, I really must get a life.

[gness]

Shaney...we know there is stuff needing washing for goodness sake...just where it is and if we are going to be covered in poo when we retrieve it isn't much to ask.

[Jeza]

I had many a spat with nursing / auxiliary staff. Some are very good at what they do, to others it's a job. A bit like the carers Mic has now.

[gness]

Oh come on, Cory.... .....what could be better than this on a Saturday evening.....☺

[DaisyNonna]

If a close family member is suddenly rushed into hospital sometimes laundry does not rush to the fore of one's mind. Would it be too much trouble to have a printed notice at the ward door reminding that soiled night attire would be put in the patient's locker to be collected and laundered by family or friends.

[nungate]

Corylus do not fret that you are spending Saturday night on here discussing soiled jammies. Some interesting points have been made and it is always good to get a debate started and see where it goes

[ethandron]

There's not many places patients dirty laundry is going to be put is there? Surely the locker is the first place to look. A bit of common sense is required rather than complaints.

[237SJ]

I agree with ethandron. The problem lies when a patient doesn`t have anyone to keep an eye on such instances. Goodness knows what happens then..

[shaneystar2]

You've hit the nail on the head there eth .Common sense .
I was very grateful for what they did for my husband without feeling the need to run around berating the nursing staff over dirty washing .

[gness]

Hi,Daisy...you have it! You know when your Mum is admitted as an emergency and you take all her nighties, knickers and toiletries in and put them in her locker?
Then the next day you say...Mum, would you like a fresh nightie?..and you reach onto the top of the pile...nothing bagged,...and the nightie you grab hold of is rolled up and full of runny poo...now that's not nursing...that's shirking.

[237SJ]

"Nothing bagged" but it was bagged in this case so that is not really relevant to this situation is it.

[gness]

I contributed my experience, 237..as we do here.

[anneasquith]

it is common practice to bag and put patients laundry in lockers, to prevent this happening, don't leave clean laundry in the locker, especially if the patient is incontinent, and hospital laundry will be used and washed.

[Psybbo]

OMG, I fear the future

[Prudie]

Yes daisy has it, in my case the hospitalisation was sudden and unexpected, quite a bunch of family were involved, including different people bringing her things in from home. None of us knew what the other was doing most of the time, we were all so shellshocked about the situation, All I would have liked is that someone told one of us that a filthy nightie had been shoved in a drawer (with other stuff so it all got spoiled).
If it were one-to-one long term visiting then I can see you would be expected to consider laundry.

[Grandma_Yiddo]

Only just looked in again and seen a previous thread gness. Grandma Yiddo is 60 years old and I took early retirement in December 2010 at age 57. So it's not that long ago.

[pixie373]

I doubt laundry is the first thing you think of when your dad/OH/relative is ill in hospital. A quick run-through or even a notice or leaflet might be helpful for the NOK to explain any expectations.

[ethandron]

Quite the reverse I think, pixie.
Don't we all expect to see to our relatives needs when they're in hospital, including laundry? Surely in this day and age we none of us expect the hospital to launder anyones own clothes do we? I certainly don't. If we don't, then where do we expect those clothes to be put? I certainly didn't need a notice or a leaflet to tell me where my dads, mums or sisters laundry was.

[Tilly2]

My main focus has been on my dad's respiratory rate and his fluid filled lungs and his malfunctioning kidneys.
I didn't really think about what he was wearing or what he had worn the previous day. A word in my ear would have been helpful. I don't expect anyone else to do his washing. I am quite capable of that but as his only child and only nearby relative, I have been slightly overwhelmed by it all.