Hi all. My mom is VERY combative with any personal care from the staff at the home - she screams for her mom and is terrified and yells out that they are trying to kill her. The doctor wants to get a urine sample from my mom to check for a UTI, but she is so combative around personal care there is no way to get her to swipe and then urinate in a cup (I don't think she even understands the concept anymore anyway). They want to put a catheter in for a short time to collect the sample, which I know will be very terrifying for her. Are there any alternatives to the catheter or any suggestions you can give me on how to make the personal care issue easier for her in general?

Thanks so much.
Lisa

Lisa, if you could get a clean catch urine specimen from her [you will need a sterile specimen cup], that would be the better option. Would she let you? I agree that she would probably not tolerate an 'in and out' catheterization. Have you noticed whether or not her urine has a strong odor or is cloudy? My husband's urine always took on an odor when he had a UTI. Sometimes confusion is the only symptom of a UTI in an elderly person.

You can buy strips over the counter to hold in the urine stream that show indication of UTI by color change. It might at least give you an idea if an infection is present and her doctor might, on that basis, order a course of antibiotics. Just a thought.

Perhaps one of those "hats" could be put under the toilet seat so that it would catch all of the urine when she goes to the bathroom on her own. Probably the urine in the "hat" wouldn't qualify for a urinalysis but at least you could detect if it's cloudy or smelly.

Thanks everyone - it appears the staff did manage to get one yesterday somehow - the strips are a good idea.

Thanks
Lisa