Protecting a chair from incontinence: What's worked for you?

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Protecting a chair from incontinence: What's worked for you?

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Buying mom a new lift chair. What’s the best way to protect it from occasional “accidents.” She’s in a nursing home. I know with my dad disposal pads didn’t really prevent problems. She wants an upholstered fabric on it. Is it practical to buy those waterproof chair covers and have backups for staff? I’d launder them. Looking to the experienced for ideas. Please share what’s worked for you.

Incontinence Product Skilled Nursing Facility

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Mom “wants an upholstered fair on it”. But if you are looking to buy an”invalid chair”, it’s unlikely that you’ll find one with upholstery, and there’s a good reason for that, which you already know.

There ARE very good quality protective covers sold as “puppy guards” or under other names, on Amazon, but at least at present, I think you will need to be responsible for them yourself.

As much as you want to make Mom as happy as possible, she may have to accept the fact that what she wants and what she needs are not doable.

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I'm happy to be responsible for the protective covers- to buy them and clean them. I was thinking of buying 2 or 3 and keeping them in her room. What I wonder is if it's too much to ask the staff to change them out when needed. Our durable medical supply company sells upholstered lift chairs. The chair she had in rehab at the same facility was upholstered. So, I'm not sure what you mean about it's unlikely I'd find one with upholstery and that what I'm looking to buy is an invalid chair- am I looking for the wrong type of chair? Appreciate any input about that. Thanks!

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I heard warnings that you shouldn't use slippery fabric: the person can slip from the lift chair.

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We have bought many bed pads of varied sizes for bed, wheelchair and chairs. They are washable and have thick cotton on one side and vinyl on the back. We even take one for the car when transport is necessary. Best part is they do not slip. I got mine from Amazon and they are called-

"6 Pack Reusable Underpads, 30” x 34” Incontinence Bed Pads."

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Thanks

I just ordered them

Penny

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My experience is with staff at nursing homes - don't expect that they will make sure any pad is placed correctly or that it is changed if wet or soiled. To be doubly sure I would get one of those large quilted pads they sell to protect furniture from pets and ask that they lay a washable or disposable pad over that, that way you are still protected even if the smaller pad is forgotten.

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That's a very good point about placement. Thanks for sharing.

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As Ann said there are disposable protectors and they are called Chuxs. They come in blue and a peach color. The blue may just fit the bottom of the chair which means everytime she moves around the Chux will bunch. The peach ones are bigger and you may be able to tuck the ends around the sides and the back.

I agree about the washable ones. I did my Moms laundry. I had a sign on the door of Moms closet "Family does laundry" but something always went to their laundry. I asked an aide what can I do to get aides to put Moms laundry in the basket provided. She took a piece of paper wrote "Family does laundry" on it and taped it above Moms bed.

You have more than one aide involved and they are used to a routine. At Moms when they take dirty clothes off they get thrown in a plastic bag and then put in the laundry bin to be washed. So, if Mom had a washable cover on her chair and it was soiled I would bet it would end up in the facilities laundry. Its just automatic for these aides. So if you go this route, you better make sure that her name is on the covers. Moms NH had a machine that did this and the only way to get that tag off was to reverse the process.

I had an old crib protector I used for Moms chair. It was flannel on both sides with rubber in the middle. I was able to tuck it. Not sure if they still make something like that.

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Thanks for taking the time to share these tips. Much appreciated.

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Buying only two or three large washable pads won't be enough if you plan to launder them off-site. It is typical to go through that many—and often more—every single day. By the end of my fiance's long illness, I was doing six loads of laundry every day!

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Would the outdoor fabric for furniture work! Or the furniture itself. Some look good and may have extra covers

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If you get it upholstered, maybe you could spray it with that spray that is used for water-proofing athletic shoes. The spray might add a layer of protection.

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I use a kitchen garbage bag under the fabric that zips off.

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Have you asked the facility what they do or suggest? Seems to me this is a piece of equipment they deal with all the time and since the clean up is their responsibility they might have something like bed pads that they use and have found to work for lift chairs. Just a thought. While you doing the laundry is a generous solution that sounds good it might actually make things harder for them since it’s not the system they use all the time but it would depend on the facility of course.

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Good thoughts. Thanks.

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I bought 24x36 bed pads from Amazon, and tuck a terry cloth washable bath mat over the top. It’s protected the chair and looks fine, comfortable for him.

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My incontinent mom sleeps in a fabric covered recliner. We found a waterproof pad that works really well. The Amazon link is below. The pads are soft quilted on one side and waterproof on the other. They come in different sizes. The 34x72 works good on our recliner. They are washable and really durable too. We also have some smaller ones throughout the house on various sofas, chairs, even the car. These pads really reduce the stress for mom and me. Best wishes.

RMS Ultra Soft 4-Layer Washable and Reusable Incontinence Bed Pad - Waterproof Bed Pads, 34"X72" https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0124XEV6Y/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apan_i_QE2KR20S7E49107JJ9MN?psc=1

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Mom's chair is a recliner, not a lift chair, so I am unsure if this would work for you. I bought a "recliner cover" from qvc (the "mink" feel one). a year or so ago, before there was any incontinence issues. Now, we use the large quilted pads on top of that cover which works well. But my Mom is at home so I'm easily able to change it when needed. If/when incontinence increases, I'll also use the disposable Chux on top of that. Not sure if this would help you.

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Sometimes what a person wants and what they need are two different things. I would get a chair that can be wiped down. Unless you are with mom 24/7 the fabric on the chair is going to get ruined.

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I had a Lazy boy fabric chair for my mom. I put plastic bags on the seat and a waterproof cover on top of bag . I then covered the chair with a fabric chair cover . She used it for 8 years until she passed away at age 97. It still looks great .

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KateyG: Per one site on the internet, "lift chairs can be cleaned with only water-based shampoo or upholstery cleaner. Be careful not to over wet/saturate the fabric." Of note is to test a small spot on the chair that cannot typically be seen for colorfastness.
KateyG: Are you certain that the NH can accommodate a lift chair?

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Yes NH can accommodate a lift chair. She is currently using an older one the own that they have temporarily let her use until she gets her own.

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Look for incontinence pads with a plastic backing to prevent accidents from leaking all the way through. A cheaper option is dog pads - but make sure they are not the scented ones.

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We folded a hospital blanket and put it on the seat cushion. Sometimes we use blue plastic chucks. Mom also uses adult briefs and pads together for incontinence. So far these have worked for her. No accidents in her new chair.

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We got my mil a nice fabric lift chair and nice pads that we changed out and washed.
when she went in to the nursing home after a stroke, staff would not place the pads in the chair or removed them, or mil did .
We had to trash the chair in a short while, even though we were frequently there to locate and place the pads back in position.
the room smelled to heaven and I kept disinfecting it, but it was a losing battle since I was not there 24/40.
we replaced the chair with a “leather” chair that we could wash down daily with clorox wipes that we brought from home.

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Thanks for that input. Helpful

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My husband was completely incontinent, and no, the pads don't completely solve the problem of leaks. I bought plastic backed pads for his chairs, and used two layers of them plus a couple of heavy bath towels, all of which could be thrown into the washer. Kept several sets of pads and towels handy.

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So many helpful answers. I appreciate the time each of you have taken to share your experiences. THANKS!

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KateyG: Thank you for your update.

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I bought a “Gorilla” brand chair pad on Amazon. It has a waterproof backing. I cover it with a good quality disposable paper chux. You can also add a small puppy pad between the chair cover and chux for extra protection. She wears her adult diaper. I have not had problems. She only sits in the chair for 3 hours at most with us doing some repositioning. Good luck.

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I used a plastic covering over the chair, then a well padded cushion so as not to embarrass my father. I also put down a pad the hospital gave us to absorb liquid and all worked quite well.

If you want even more added protection, you can use a towel right over the plastic covering so shield it further from any liquid (or anything else).

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on top of the cleaning / protection method you choose, I recommend adding OdoBan to your laundry and use it as a room or fabric freshener. I use in my carpet/upholstery cleaner machine too, when accidents occur on my Dad’s mattress, chairs or car upholstery.

https://odoban.com/

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Plastic covers won't absorb the liquid, it will spill over, out and around. You'll need something to collect the "accident". I purchased a washable chair cover, but under it put down chuck pads. They are available in washable type or disposable.

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what are chuck pads - i would like to get them for my brother's chair and situation. thank you

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Is the seat cushion removable? Some of them are. What I did once with a lift recliner chair was take the seat cushion off and literally put it inside a plastic garbage bag, the kind with the drawstring. Then I put double-sided tape on the underside to fix it in place. I used the quilted waterproof bed pads under the client which soaked up the urine.
I did this with their couch cushions too because the client would pee all over the furniture because she refused to wear a pull-up for a long time.
You could also leave the original plastic wrap on the chair cushion when they send it from the factory. Then put quilted bed pads on top.

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So many good ideas! The best disposable underpads I have found are from Wellness Briefs...I think the website is wellnessbriefs.com. They want leak and are big. I keep one tucked in my mom's recliner. It has saved her chair on occasion. If not soiled, it holds up in place for quite a while. Sometimes i just take it outside to shake out the crumbs and then just smooth it back in place. The things we have to learn!

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I have the waterproof couch/chair covers which can easily be washed. However I also keep a puppy pee pad under that.
Because despite the water proof covers being “waterproof”,.. after certain amount of washes, they wear out and can develop tiny holes / weak spots. I discovered this when I spilt a whole drink and it went through in part.

That works fine for seats as really it’s just a bit of side leakage with Mum. Even if there is no leakage she leaves a certain foul smell due to constant UTI’s so it’s nice to be able to launder them with nice smelling clothes softener (yes I have been trying to address the UTI with doc).

That being said, I’ve gone a bit overboard with puppy peed pads lately on carpet as well because Mum decides to “try” change her pull up at the most inconvenient times. Guaranteed she’ll attempt it while I’ve walked to the post box or having a shower myself or cooking etc. OR middle of night when I’m sleeping. This morning I found her again,.. she’d got dressed,.. removed her pull up on the carpet floor, she’d then got half way through putting on new ones (which were on her chair), she’d then got distracted and just put on her actual dress pants,.. sigh. So yet again I’m washing her pants and cleaning her floor.
I honestly wish the house was not carpet!! It’s not even mine, it’s a rental so hence my efforts / worry.

In the car I use a thicker waterproof pad made for elderly. But also I tend to take her out when she’s just freshly showered so there’s usually no problems. This also works in conjunction to convince her to shower ;) She goes the entire trip usually without needing a change.

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