What are some good ways to change my bedridden mother's diapers?

Do you have any nurses coming to help you? If so, ask them to show you a"roll-over" technique. You said "us", so im assuming you have help. Make sure you have not the pull-up kind, but the depends that opens on the sides like a baby diaper.

Have your helper stand on the other side of mom.
Open diaper.
Roll mom towards your helper. Your helper not only holds her up, but is also the main for comforting mom.
Pull the diaper out and give mom a good washing.
Place a fresh diaper under her. Bunch a little under mom.
Roll mom onto her back and then slightly towards you, your helper now pulls out that bunched part.

This technique puts the least stress on your mom without having her to help or to lift her.

Best Wishes!

My sis has gotten sick. So far I have only got a little dizzy. :)
What is really hard is when she had eight arms. I could not keep her hands out of the mess and clean her at the same time. That is when you have to yell. HELP!!! Never be ashamed to ask for help or you will go crazy.

I am not kellybean but at night I just lay a diaper under mom so her bottom can get air. You need to turn her every two hrs any way so she does not get bed sores if you do not have am air mattress or sponge mattress on the bed and than you can clean her and put a fresh diaper and pad under her. I put cheap diaper rash med. with zinc in it on her and lots of vasoline. You can get paper or cloth underpads and hospice will supplie this stuff for you. Ask lots of questions they are full of info.

During Mom's ER visits last fall and then four day hospitalization, they just didn't use diapers or insert pads at all. They used those big disposable pads that protect the mattress and sheets. The patient could call for help to go to the bathroom or portapotty, or they just went on the pad. They even used parts of that for wiping the body. Then roll it up tight to dispose of it. The nurse said it is easier all around and not having pads/depends admits more air to the area. So, is this now standard procedure in all nursing homes and hospitals.

Thanks for starting this thread.

The best way to clean and then "rediaper" is to wipe as much as you can into the old diaper and then place a towel or bed protector under her to wash. Make sure she is completely dry, maybe a small amount of powder, NO BABY POWDER, as that tends to have a little bit of oiliness to it. Medicated powder DOES work great and you an buy those in large bottles at even the dollar store. The thing about it is, bacteria loves moist, dark, hot places. Rashes and sores will happen a lot quicker if not kept as dry as possible. If your mom wants to umm "air out" a bit. If she's comfortable with it haha, why not?

And yes, make sure you change her position every 2 hours. The skin on the joints. Like elbows, ankle bones, shoulder blades and especially the bottom, they can become very nasty if not relieved regularly. If shes laying flat on her back, even adding a pillow or taking one away is good and placing pillows to elevate her arms will give a good position change. A rolled up towel under her Achilles heals too.

Wounds and skin integrity are a big concern with bedridden seniors. There should be a wound nurse evaluating her weekly. If not, I would talk with the DON about having this done. At minimum the facility should be using a barrier cream of some sort, if there is no allergy to them. There are many effective dressings that can assist with healing the area, while also providing comfort and additional protection, such as Duoderm. Make sure she is being cleaned properly by cleaning from front to back and pat dry completely. Depending on the severity of the skin issue, she may benefit from a special mattress, such as a low air loss mattress. A last result measure would be to use a urinary catheter short-term to keep the urine away from the skin, as it is very acidic. I hope this helps. I was a wound nurse for a year and would be happy to answer any further questions.

kellybean said it all. This is what I do. I am alone most of the time but you just have to go from one side of the bed to the other alot. Talking to your mom while doing this helps. and make sure the bed is up high so you don't get a back ache. Good luck.

My mom is now living in a nursing home. Just couldn't handle her any longer. Took care of her for 5 years, and it just got way too much for me by myself. Anyways, in the home they are very good at changing her diapers. The aids there do it in about 5 minutes. First they take off the old diaper. Then they tell mom to turn onto her side and hold on to the hospital beds bar. She they cleans and drys her, and gives her new pads if needed. Then she puts the new diaper down on the bed, tucks it under her as much as possible, and then tells mom to turn to the other side and hold onto the bars. She then has the diaper down and she tells mom to let go and just lie flat as she fastens the diaper. It's all done in about 5 minutes....Hope this helps.

Just a quick suggestion, but baby whipes are great for everything and it could make clean up easier.

for those that are still reading these comments, using Aloe-Vesta for perineal cleaning is a real winner- it is pricey but well worth it if you want real clean- baby powder only clogs up and is so moist it breeds bacteria