Supporting from hospital to home
Choosing the right ostomy products for your patients to use at home can be challenging.
They’re about to transition from a hospital setting, where they’ve received close management, monitoring, and support for their new stoma or wound care routines, to a home setting where they’re expected to take control. This is when problems can occur, but knowing how to help your stoma patients find the most suitable products can help manage their new routine, minimise leaks, and feel in control.
As an ostomy nurse or carer, you’ll have lots of things to consider when trying to choose the best products. Factors such as skin topography, co-morbidities, ostomy shape and size, and treatment plans will all impact the stoma care routine that’s put in place, and the best products to support this. On top of this, your stoma patients have just been through major, life-changing surgery and, as Cowell, Kupsick and McNichol (2016), point out, they’ll need to know 18 new things before being discharged from care1.
Taking all of this on board can be overwhelming – especially in the early days. So, being able to provide your patients with easy-to-use and adaptable products can help minimise the risk of problems occurring, stop them happening in the first place, and give your patients the confidence they need as they get used to their new daily routine without the close monitoring of a hospital setting.
Getting to grips with stoma care at home – and creating a secure fit
Every ostomy, and every stoma care patient is unique. So, it’s no surprise that there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to helping your patients find a stoma care routine that allows them to feel secure, supported, confident, and in control. Going from the hospital to home can be daunting for many ostomy patients. But our latest studies show that using easy-to-use, adaptable, and mouldable products can help your patients get to grips with their new stoma care routine beyond the hospital setting.
Opting for products that have been designed to fit and flex to the changing shape of a new stoma can encourage patients to feel more confident and in control of their routine – especially in the early days. Whether it’s helping them to choose ostomy products that are easy and mouldable (and adapt to the stoma itself), or ones that are specifically designed to flex and fit to body contours, our latest research shows how using these products can help minimise leaks, ease peristomal skin problems, increase wear time, and give your patients the confidence and control they need to adapt to their new daily routine.
Guidance and resources
See the latest statistics on skin damage from stoma bag leaks, how these impact ostomates, and the importance of helping your patients choose a reliable ostomy seal.
Overcoming leaks and managing extremely sore skin case study
Find out how unskilled care can lead to unnecessary leaks and extremely irritated and painful skin for patients – and how choosing adaptable, skin–friendly stoma care products can create a secure fit to optimise outcomes.
Making the impossible possible wound case study
See how using the right products can help you and your patients overcome the challenge of complex fistulas at home to protect skin, increase wear time, enhance mental wellbeing, and boost overall recovery.
How to shape your seal video
Watch our short video to see the different ways you and your patients can apply a mouldable seal to create a secure, unique fit at home. The possibilities really are endless!
Creating a secure fit at home – every time
Our Shape of You infographic shows how you and your patients can create a secure, unique fit at home with easy-to-use mouldable seals – and the best products for the job.
References:
1. Colwell, Janice & Kupsick, Phyllis & Mcnichol, Laurie. (2016). Outcome Criteria for Discharging the Patient With a New Ostomy From Home Health Care: A WOCN Society Consensus Conference. Journal of Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing. 43. 269-273. 10.1097/WON.0000000000000230.
Ostomy products you can rely on
From pouches and seals to innovative accessories, our eakin® product range includes everything you need to support your patients after they’ve been discharged. You can order product samples directly from us or through your local rep to see the difference for yourself.
