Bedside Drainage Bags – Buying Guide

Bedside Drainage Bags are used at night to collect large volumes of urine. They are ideal for people who are restricted to bed or wheelchair and cannot urinate properly or suffer from incontinence. These urine collection bags are made up of medical-grade materials which are safe to use. Urine bags hook on the side of wheelchair or bed for easy accessibility. The soft and flexible tubing of these bags provides tug-free and comfortable sleeping. The graduated markers denote the volume of urine contained in them.

Choosing the Right Bedside Drainage Bag

While choosing a bedside drainage bag, it is recommended to consider the below-given factors which help you buy a product that best suits your urological requirements.

    Urine Bag Capacity

• Drainage bags with large urine holding capacity are useful when you want to avoid frequent emptying of urine. They can be used at night times, for long journeys or where easy access to toilet is not possible.
• Smaller capacity catheter drainage bags allow for more discretion and effortless handling. They need to be emptied more frequently.

Usability

• Disposable: Disposable bedside drainage bags are disposed of after one use. These single-use bags help in preventing the risks of developing infections due to repeated use.
• Reusable: Reusable bedside drainage bags are used multiple times with regular cleaning. They are cost efficient as less number of drainage bags are required over a period.

Urine Meter

Sometimes there is a need for monitoring the amount of urine output, especially in case of surgery or critically ill patients. Urine meters best fulfil this need by accurately measuring the volume of urine output.

Anti-Reflux Chamber

It is important to keep the urine drainage bag below the bladder level. If you are not sure that whether you will be able to keep it below the bladder level or not, you can opt for bedside drainage bag with anti-reflux chamber. Anti-reflux chamber helps in preventing the backflow of urine from the drainage bag to the bladder.

Hooks and Hangers

If you are a caregiver, you might want that the task of emptying the urine collection bag does not get complicated for you. For this, you may prefer a bedside drainage bag without any string or clamp. While on the other hand, nurses and hospital staff may want hooks, hangers and strings for quick and easy removal because they do not have only one but many patients to take care of. Using hooks and hangers ensure that the drainage tubing is positioned correctly for unrestricted urine flow.

Sampling Ports

Since urine is a good indicator of overall health, many times samples of urine are required for testing. Bedside drainage bags with a sampling port have a point in the inlet tubing from where you can take urine samples. If you feel the need of taking samples, you can opt to buy these drainage bags.

How to Manage Urine Drainage Bags?

A catheter is usually attached to a drainage bag. There are two types:

A leg bag is a smaller drainage device that attaches by elastic bands to the leg. It is usually worn during the day, because it fits discreetly under pants or skirts. It is easily emptied into the toilet.

A down drain is a larger drainage device. It may be used during the night. This device is hung on the bed or placed on the floor.

The drainage bag must always stay lower than the bladder to prevent urine from flowing back up into the bladder. Empty the drainage device at least every 8 hours, or when it is full.

Some experts recommend cleaning the drainage bag periodically. Remove the drainage bag from the catheter (attach the catheter to a second drainage device during the cleaning). Cleanse and deodorize the drainage bag by filling the bag with two parts vinegar and three parts water. You can substitute chlorine bleach for the vinegar and water mixture. Let this solution soak for 20 minutes. Hang the bag with the outlet valve open to drain and dry the bag.

Attaching a Bedside Drainage Bag

1. Wash your hands
2. With an alcohol saturated swab clean the catheter.
3. Clean the connection tubing of the bedside drainage bag.
4. Connect the bag and the catheter tightly using a twisting motion.
5. Wash your hands again.
6. Attach the urinary drainage bag to a bed or wheelchair.

Emptying a Bedside Drainage Bag

1. Wash your hands.
2. Make sure that you do not raise the urinary drainage bag above the bladder level.
3. Hold the bedside drainage bag over the toilet.
4. Open the drainage spout present at the bottom of the bag. Allow the urine to drain completely.
5. Once the bag is empty, take an alcohol saturated wipe and clean the drainage port and cap.
6. Close the drainage spout.
7. Wash your hands again.

Cleaning a Bedside Drainage Bag

1. Wash your hands.
2. Disconnect the catheter from the tubing of the drainage bag.
3. Fill the bag with 2 parts of white vinegar and 3 parts of water.
4. Shake the solution and leave it in the bag for 20 minutes.
5. After 20 minutes, drain the solution and rinse the bag with cold water.
6. Hang the bag with drainage spout pointing down and let it air-dry.
7. Wash your hands again.

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