Catheter Care with Leg Bag and Overnight Bag Information For Patients

What You Will Need

The Hospital will give you

• Extra leg bag
• Overnight bag
• Extra flip flow valve (if using one)

From Home

• Clean bucket or container
• Antibacterial soap on tap to wash night bag daily – e.g. Dettol or Palmolive

General Catheter Care Tips

• Always wash your hands before and after emptying urine from your bag.
• The leg bag should remain attached to your catheter for 7 days.
• You can empty your leg bag as often as you wish throughout the day.
• Your catheter may be firmly secured with tape to your upper thigh and use the leg straps with a leg bag to prevent dragging and pulling of catheter.
• Rinse the area around the catheter daily.
• Avoid becoming constipated. Try to eat a diet high in fibre, especially fruit and vegetables.  You may need to take a laxative.
• Try to drink at least one glass of fluid per hour. This reduces the risk of infection, and blockage of the catheter.

Overnight Drainage Bags

• The overnight drainage bag has a larger capacity (2000ml) than the leg bag and the tubing is longer to enable greater movement when in bed.
  

• At BedTime
  
  
1. Attach the larger overnight bag to the connection on the bottom of the leg bag.  DO NOT REMOVE THE LEG BAG FROM THE CATHETER.
2. Open the leg bag tap or the lever tap to allow drainage from the leg bag into the night bag.
3. Loosen the leg straps on your leg bag.  This will improve your comfort at night.
4. Place the night bag into a bucket next to your bed. ( in case of leakage)

• In The Morning
  
  
  1. Close the tap on the leg bag.
  2. Disconnect the night bag and empty the bag into the toilet.
  3. Retighten the leg straps on the leg bag to your leg if you use them.
  4. Rinse the night bag well with running cold water.
  5. Soak and wash the bag with Antibacterial soap on tap and cold water for one hour.
  6. Rinse and air dry the bag ready for use again.

Problem Solving

• Contact the rooms or your GP if you have blood in your urine, your urine is cloudy or smelly, or if you have a high fever or chills. You may have a urinary tract infection.
• If you have no urine in the bag for several hours, check that the tubing is not kinked or the bag is not above bladder level. You may not be drinking enough and need to increase your fluids to decrease the blood in your urine and prevent any blockage.