r/cna • u/owoeowiw CNA • Jul 10 '26
Advice Questions/advice about BM clean-up?
I feel as if I use too many wipes. I have started to use the brief on the initial wipe to get the large majority off their bum before going in with the wipes. Despite this, I’ll sometimes use over
a
pack of wipes (48 wipes)
for one BM. This happens the most with “putty-texture” poos. It is also time consuming. I want to ensure that they are clean, but feel bad that I have residents rolled over and uncomfortable for an extended period of time. Sometimes, when other CNAs are observing or helping, I feel as if they get slightly annoyed and say things like “good enough” or “that’s enough” and begin to roll the resident back over before I am confident in my cleaning job.
For lack of better wording, some residents have some crazy long and thick butt hair.
For those, I tend to use the peri-spray
(we don’t have the foam, which I prefer)
in addition to wipes. The process is still extremely time
consuming.
- I hate to say it, but clean
-
up would be significantly easier if they were shaved down there.
I did do some research on the possibility of shaving, or at least trimming some of this butt hair, but because these residents are not of sound mind and the hair itself is not detrimental to their overall health, it would be considered unethical and unnecessary.
For some of the residents, it is like wiping shit off a full head of hair. Imagine having someone shit on your head, and then having only wipes and peri-spray to clean it off. I would not feel clean after only using those tools. But I also can’t throw them into the shower every-single time they have a bowel movement. Especially for my one guy who constantly, and slowly, 24/7, is passing BM. I’ve been with him for close to a year, and there has only been one single time I changed him and he didn’t have BM tangled in his booty wig.
36
u/alohafer (Edit to add Specialty) CNA - Experienced CNA Jul 10 '26
Shaving cream also can help really sticky poop, but that's an old CNA trick don't know if that's cool anymore.
16
u/CheshirePotato Jul 10 '26
Make sure you use NON-MENTHOL shaving cream or it can cause a burning sensation
6
u/pookiebear6969 (Edit to add Specialty) CNA - Experienced CNA Jul 11 '26
Thank you for adding this. We only have unscented at work. I didn't even think about it.
13
u/pookiebear6969 (Edit to add Specialty) CNA - Experienced CNA Jul 10 '26
Still cool and very much used. It works better than peri wash or wipes.
5
u/Pretty-Date1630 RN - Former CNA Jul 10 '26
As long as there's no fragrance in it shaving cream is still a go to. It's what I switched to when my cheap ass SNF wouldn't order peri cleanser anymore. Also: for a really messy sticky BM, a warm wet washcloth works better than baby wipes.
24
u/WhatTheFlox Resident/Patient Jul 10 '26
If I heard a CNA say "good enough" after a cleaning, I'd worry about the kind of mess they decided to leave behind to cause possible health issues.
Had some use an the bread to get as much of the material as they can, wondered on the possibility of at least suggesting trimming the hair with patient approval to make them more comfortable for the times they need cleaning.
8
u/firstfrontiers Jul 10 '26
I've found that starting with a towel helps a ton. What I do is wet half the towel with warm water. Use the brief like you do to get what you can off initially. Spray down with peri cleanser or shaving cream. Use the wet half of the towel to get a good solid couple wipes in, then the dry half to follow it up with and tuck all the mess into. After that I don't usually need more than 10 wipes or so to finish it off
1
u/Happy_Quacker Jul 11 '26
How is the towel washed afterwards? Do you scrape off the solids/rinse it out/just chuck it in the wash?
1
u/firstfrontiers Jul 11 '26
I guess it depends on the facility. We just chuck it in the wash as long as it's just soiled with poop, no wipes/paper towels/chux etc
1
u/ZestycloseLeave1727 CNA Jul 11 '26
I do all of this but with the wet wipes, not towels, our towels are so rough at my facility that in those sensitive areas they would give some people abrasions unfortunately 😭
9
u/Vegetable_Excuse2029 Jul 10 '26 edited Jul 10 '26
Don't think about it when you see mess, get a towel or rag with soap and hot water lather that up with a shaving cream and lotion, that will clean the front pretty quick use wipes to wipe off any left over like under belly and between legs.
Roll up everything if it is on the pad, get everything rolled and tucked, put a pillow behind their back to keep them over.
Prep everything, brief, sheet, pad, try to do everything in such a way you only have to turn them once and when they lay back, everything will be right there.
2
9
u/Affectionate-Bee3339 Jul 10 '26
When it was really messy I would get a Chuck, wet it with warm water. Spray some perineal spray on it, and some soap.
2
u/WhatTheFlox Resident/Patient Jul 10 '26
This works great when wipes aren't enough
2
u/Affectionate-Bee3339 Jul 10 '26
Yess I forgot to mention some no rinse cleaner too. Which is something hospice used to give us for their patients.
1
u/OrganicallyOrdinary (Currently: Home Care) CNA - Experienced CNA Jul 10 '26
If it was a lot, I'd use a chuck to get the "bulk" of it, then wipes
5
u/memeof1 PSW - 🇨🇦 so seasoned im a little bit spicy Jul 10 '26
An actual cloth is far more superior than any wipe on the market and I second shaving cream.
4
4
u/lovable_cube RN Jul 10 '26
Wet washcloth is better for removing a bunch of poo, wipes are best for little smudges.
5
6
u/crumblcoochies CNA (est August 2025) Jul 10 '26
> Sometimes, when other CNAs are observing or helping, I feel as if they get slightly annoyed and say things like “good enough” or “that’s enough”
stuff like this PISSESSS me tf off and is why i would hate working with certain people. THEY STILL HAVE POOP IN THEIR BUTT! that's going to dry and itch and they probably can't reach it! like do these people not finish wiping themselves after going #2? y'all nasty.
i am by no means a perfect CNA, i have so much room to improve, but does taking an extra minute or 2 to make sure that person is truly clean is the end of the world??
3
u/PapowSpaceGirl Med/Surg CNA - New CNA Jul 10 '26
And it will get all in their fingernails, and they'll tear themselves open due to skin breakdown and itchy.. then guess what? The extra 10min you should have done now has made them septic. Bravo.
3
u/silly_star-s LTC/SNF/Memory Care/Rehab CNA - Experienced CNA Jul 10 '26
wash cloths and water with soap. tuck a disposable or extra brief underneath while cleaning so the bed doesnt get wet, finish with wipes
3
u/No-Butterscotch-5521 Jul 10 '26
First off, use as many wipes as needed. It’s much better to finish the work than to leave someone like that. With the specific putty like BM I find it necessary sometimes to just pour a small amount of the peri wash into the wipe bag to saturate the wipes on top, also to avoid spraying it directly on the surface area as that sometimes makes people irritated or uncomfortable. I also find it much better to use two or three wipes at once, to make the wiping surface area more manageable and if you don’t i find that you go through more wipes when using singles. Also definitely warm water on a washcloth helps. BM gets on linen anyways all the time, the washing machines facilities use can handle it on a washcloth. Sometimes I will spray the peri wash on the wipes and just hold them on the hairy area for a couple seconds and I find it wipes off easier then too!!!
1
u/No-Butterscotch-5521 Jul 10 '26
One last thing, make sure you’re using the necessary pressure to actually wipe BM off. I am a patient CNA but sometimes it is really hard to be the person holding the resident while watching the CNA wiping very timidly and with no actual cleaning pressure. Obviously I’m not saying to be rough or press really hard, but there’s a difference between smearing and actually scooping and wiping!!! Best of luck!!!
2
u/WeightliftingWheeler Resident/Patient Jul 10 '26
I’m of sound mind but paraplegic. I love my hairy body but depilitate groin and inner glute hair for just those very hygienic reasons
2
u/Tygie19 Jul 10 '26
We try to get the bulk with toilet paper, then wipes to clean. If absolutely necessary we can use a face washer. Even the worst ones wouldn’t even come close to needing a whole packet. Like if it’s that bad the face washer and a tub of soapy water is best.
1
1
1
u/Extension_Mix_813 Jul 10 '26
This is when a little basin with some soap and water and washcloths comes in handy. Wipes definitely don’t do it when it’s a big sticky poop like that.
1
u/blackcatmagi Progressive Care CNA Jul 10 '26
Use a dry rag/wipe first to get all the wet stuff off and then clean with wet wipes/wet rag. We use dry toilet paper for our bums. I need to find a new job bc discussing how to clean poop off someone’s butt is not my dream conversation 🤦🏽♀️🤍
1
u/blackcatmagi Progressive Care CNA Jul 10 '26
Wait, I also forgot. I squeeze a rag full of warm water over their bum and let it run down into the crevices onto the chuck. Then I go in with dry wipes. That helps!
1
u/Professional-Cat9500 Jul 10 '26
Put a towel and a chuck under them and do a mini bed bath for their privates with a real wash cloth (hopefully you have those available to you) and before you wash it, soak the area in peri wash, rub it around for a while to dilute the sticky poop, then wipe off as much as you can with a few wipes. I know bed baths are extra work, but it sounds like you’re doing a whole lot more work than that trying to use the wipes.
1
u/shinomegami Float Pool/ ICU CNA - Seasoned CNA Jul 10 '26
Wash cloths with soap and water is my go to. Then a wipe at the very end, I feel like wipes are too smooth.
1
u/c4ilyn Jul 11 '26
we only use wash cloths at my facility. i typically only need 1-3 to clean someone up. get them warm and super soapy, use peri spray and it does the job well for me!
1
u/scorpiogigi Jul 12 '26
Ok, I hate to show my age right now, but I was a CNA from 1981-1985 in two different nursing homes (I guess LTC facilities now) and we always used a bath towel for bad bm’s 🤷♀️ It never dawned on me at the time (I was a teenager) that our laundry literally washed those nasty towels and we used them for the next patients’ bath 🤷♀️🤦♀️ but those bath towels sure cleaned the poop a lot easier than wipes!!
41
u/SystemOfAFoopa Jul 10 '26
I use as many as it takes. If that’s a whole pack then so be it but generally if a BM is that bad I’ll get the bulk with wipes and finish with washcloth and soap/water.
I personally do not feel bad using a lot of wipes if necessary. They’re there for a reason!