How To Change An Ostomy Appliance

By Arline Bradley


A person might have been on an ostomy previously. If you also had one, you should be wearing the appliance all the time. Sometimes, people who have it get so frustrated. Sometimes, it would make you want to scratch it as it gets itchy.

In this article, you would be guided on what to do. You will be guided on the steps on how to change your ostomy appliance. Doing this will also help maintain the skin around your stoma healthy.

The first procedure would be preparing the things you would be using. You should have some clean water, strips of gauze and some paper towels ready. You should also have your new bag ready. You should have it pre cut. Throw away the old one so you must have the necessary stuff ready.

Remove your shirt. Insert the paper towel between the skin and your underwear. It would help you change the bags in a neat way. It would avoid having dirt on your underwear and skin when you change it.

To remove the old one, hold the skin down with one hand. Pull the bag away until the stoma is completely uncovered. Throw that away in the waste bin. Be sure that you always have a bin that will just be a reach away when you are changing so that you could easily throw that away. It is also best to shave away the hair around it. This would help the bag stick better. You will also feel less pain when you peal it away.

Soak some gauze strips on the water and use that in wiping the skin. Pay close attention to the surrounding parts. Wipe your stoma until it becomes clean. Use a paper towel to dry that. Paper towels are the best ones to use since it could absorb better. It will also not stick on your skin.

You could use a lotion recommended for it. It would help lessen the sore. But, it would hinder the appliance from sticking well. Place the new one. Make sure it would stick well. You can use your palms to make sure of that.

It would be better if you will be changing it in the morning. This is the time that the stoma is the smallest although it is still active. Most people who have it do that as well. The number of times you are going to be changing your appliance will depend on your supply and its behavior. There would be circumstances that you could just do that every other day. There would also be circumstances that it should be done every day. If you think that is not budget friendly just have that done every morning.

You should ask for the assistance of your doctor so you could take care of it in a better way. Doctors could recommend the best type of appliance for you. They could recommend stuff to lessen pain as you are replacing it. Before you change it, check if your hands are clean. If you check it, you could prevent some infections.




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