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?

[Psybbo]

Tilly, hugs, difficult times ahead of us, Jeza and Gness

[Tilly2]

Sibs, you seem to be going through the same thing as me. We need to help each other. xx

[237SJ]

"I have been slightly overwhelmed but it all" Well, I can understand that. I have been quite overwhelmed by my mother`s situation (metastic breast cancer) and that is why I wouldn`t bother making official complaints. By all means, I would mention something to the staff when I am in the hospital but I don`t think I could be bothered to go down the official routes and have even more grief to deal with. I would like to think that if I had a word about something that I wasn`t happy with, the staff would commute that amongst themselves and keep an eye that the situation didn`t happen again. Maybe I am being optimistic.

[gness]

Then you would have been nursing during my many years of hospital visiting, Grandma...not that I visited ....just got permission to move in....oh for more like you...x

Why do people think we are asking the hospital to do our laundry or berating them? Not open to the experiences of others I suppose....if you read again...we are not....some of us are concerned...through bitter experience...about HAI.

A simple and hygienic procedure is what we want....

[gness]

You are being optimistic, 237....It took an inquest to sort out some of my issues...they were sorted and I followed it through afterwards.
I may have complained but I do know that things are better for patients in those wards now.....and I'm pleased about that.

[ethandron]

No one is suggesting that anyone expects the hospital to do anyone's personal laundry, just pointing out that as that's not the case, which it quite obviously isn't, then where do you suppose dirty personal laundry would be put? In a plastic bag, in the locker. Seems like a simple and hygienic procedure to me.
I'm sorry you're going through difficult times with your dad Tilly, I know how you feel :)

[Tilly2]

Sticking stinking, soiled clothes in a bag in a locker is not hygienic. Especially when the lockers are not cleaned before the next patient uses them.

[gness]

I know that, Tilly...you know that...but.....

But then I have the husband who died from dirty hospital disease.... :-(

[Tilly2]

Gness, I'm sorry if this has upset you. That's it now, no more.

[black_cat51]

i think it's likely that the member of staff who cleaned up was on in the morning, whereas visiting is in the afternoon. It is important to hand over the medical things between shifts and maybe the "can you tell the patient's daughter there is some washing in the locker" message got missed.