Your Care at Home:
Your Care at Home:Ileostomy CarePage 1 of 3NarratorIf you’ve recently had an ileostomy, you probably have a lot of questions. It can be a big adjustment. Butjust learning more about how an ileostomy works and how to take care of it may help make it easier for you.My friend and I will help you.An ileostomy is an opening to drain body waste from your small intestine into a pouch that you wear on yourbody. It’s usually placed to the right of your belly button, and may be permanent or temporary. Your waste,or stool, is usually loose and liquid, and contains digestive juices that are very irritating to your skin. So you’llneed to take extra special care to protect your skin around the opening, or stoma.There are two main types of ileostomy pouches, one-piece and two-piece. Your doctor or nurse will helpyou decide what’s right for you. Ileostomy pouches are usually drainable. An open, or drainable, pouch canbe emptied and reused, but you’ll still need to replace it. You’ll have to dispose of the stool in your pouchwhen it is one-third full. You’ll empty it into the toilet. It’s best to empty your open pouch before its one-thirdfull.Hold the pouch over the toilet and remove the clip if it has one, but don’t throw it away. Now, turn the tail ofthe pouch inside out, making a cuff, and empty the pouch by squeezing from top to bottom. With your fingerwrapped in toilet paper, wipe from the outside to the inside making sure the outside of the pouch tail isclean. Turn the cuff back and reapply the clamp or Velcro-like closure to close it.Remember, you’ll need to replace your pouches as recommended by your doctor and nurse. You want tochange the barrier at least every seven days. Closed pouches are replaced every day, usually after a bowelmovement. Most people who wear closed pouches don’t empty them before they remove them. However, ifyou prefer to empty the pouch in the toilet before you throw it away, you can. Emptied or not, double bagthe pouch in two plastic bags and throw it out. Never flush the pouch, as it will stop up your toilet.Now let’s talk about how to attach a new ileostomy pouch. Your pouch may be one-piece, attaching to yourbody as a single unit. Or it might be a two-piece pouch with one adhesive piece, called a skin barrier, thatattaches to the body and a second piece, the pouch, that fastens on to that. Before you start, choose thetime of day when your ileostomy is least active. Then gather your supplies, including a wastebasket, twoplastic bags and a new pouch or the skin barrier “flange.” Cut or mold the flange if needed.For a one-piece pouch, close the bottom of your new pouch before you apply it. Then cut or mold the skinbarrier if it needs to be sized. Make sure you take off the protective film from the barrier before applying it.With your skin clean and dry, apply the pouch from the bottom up. Hold your hands over it for about 45seconds for the barrier to mold to your skin. That’s it!Now let’s look at how to put on a two-piece pouch. Make sure the bottom of your new pouch is closedbefore you apply it. Cut or mold the opening of your skin barrier, the piece of the pouch that fits around yourstoma, to fit your stoma as you’ve been taught, or use a premeasured barrier. Then remove the protectivefilm from the barrier and use your finger in the opening to soften it and keep it even. Then apply the skinbarrier around your stoma running your finger all around the opening to make sure it’s sealed. Snap thepouch onto the barrier starting from bottom to the top. Press your hand against the barrier for 45 seconds,to mold it to your skin. Make double sure your pouch is closed. Then snap the end of the pouch to makesure the two parts are secure.With an ileostomy, you should call your doctor if you have: Abdominal pain, nausea, severe constipation or diarrhea A fever of 101° or higher Increased bleeding around the ileostomy opening, some streaks of blood are normal, but not morethan that Also call if your skin becomes irritatedPage 2 of 3You probably have a lot of questions about living with an ileostomy. Before you leave the hospital, ask for areferral to a home health agency to help with the adjustment. Most insurance companies should cover avisit or two.© The Wellness NetworkPage 3 of 3
© The Wellness Network
