Forum Discussion
Picc Line and Portacath .... any tips appreciated on clothing & anything else
Hi guys
My husband was supposed to have a portacath fitted this week for his 'next regime' of chemo on Wed .... but sadly the request got 'lost' by the radiology mob - and now he has to have a picc line fitted for the first couple of treatments as he can't have the portacath fitted now until mid December.
He is not very happy at having ANYTHING fitted into his body - and now he has to have 2 procedures instead of just the one, thru what I can only call incompetence by the radiology mob. They had the request since Nov 11 (plus a confirmed conversation with the Palliative care nurse on the 16th Nov that the appt was 'pending') then when I rang for the appt the other day, I was told on the 22nd Nov that they'd never received it! I am SPEWING.
SO ... He has the picc line fitted on Monday. I've seen shirts with zips on the front for those with Portacaths - but is there specific clothing for those with Picc lines? Do you have any photos - re portacaths as well?
He will also have a 'bag' of chemo feeding for about 48hrs after his chemo session .... and I am concerned that it will annoy him, particularly when sleeping.
What did you do to stop the 'bag' from bouncing around 'specially at night? Apparently there is a sling that can be worn around the neck, or a bum bag around the waist .... as he has mod/severe dementia & I am concerned he may try & pull the lines out.
I hope there is some sort of tubigrip to put over the arm to hold everything 'in place' & stop the dangles ..... and I'll try & get a BIGGER bit of tubigrip to put around his whole torso at night as well (if there IS such a thing) to hold the chemo bag in place!
Many thanks xx
My husband was supposed to have a portacath fitted this week for his 'next regime' of chemo on Wed .... but sadly the request got 'lost' by the radiology mob - and now he has to have a picc line fitted for the first couple of treatments as he can't have the portacath fitted now until mid December.
He is not very happy at having ANYTHING fitted into his body - and now he has to have 2 procedures instead of just the one, thru what I can only call incompetence by the radiology mob. They had the request since Nov 11 (plus a confirmed conversation with the Palliative care nurse on the 16th Nov that the appt was 'pending') then when I rang for the appt the other day, I was told on the 22nd Nov that they'd never received it! I am SPEWING.
SO ... He has the picc line fitted on Monday. I've seen shirts with zips on the front for those with Portacaths - but is there specific clothing for those with Picc lines? Do you have any photos - re portacaths as well?
He will also have a 'bag' of chemo feeding for about 48hrs after his chemo session .... and I am concerned that it will annoy him, particularly when sleeping.
What did you do to stop the 'bag' from bouncing around 'specially at night? Apparently there is a sling that can be worn around the neck, or a bum bag around the waist .... as he has mod/severe dementia & I am concerned he may try & pull the lines out.
I hope there is some sort of tubigrip to put over the arm to hold everything 'in place' & stop the dangles ..... and I'll try & get a BIGGER bit of tubigrip to put around his whole torso at night as well (if there IS such a thing) to hold the chemo bag in place!
Many thanks xx
14 Replies
- @wendy55 - after you mentioned the seatbelt problem, I mentioned it to the Onc girls & they've given us a soft 'pad' that fits onto the seatbelt ..... thank you for raising that issue! xx
My sister used that video to help her put the zips in - and STILL got it wrong! LOL. But these are her TShirts for hubby - really chuffed that he will have them in time for his first use of the Port, which goes in Mid Dec!
I like the Motif of the first one, too!
Winter ones, too
His chemo requires him to wear a bottle for 2 days, slowly releasing the chemo ..... so I got him to wear one of his Cycling Tops, inside out & back to front .... so the 'rear pocket' was now in the 'front' and bottle was hidden from view, in the pocket!!
So he wears THAT during the day when he has the bottle attached (as he hates it hanging around his neck in the little bag) and that first night, he slept in it as well - but he hated that even more! He took it out of the pocket a couple of times & I was scared it would disconnect from his tubes and spill & that would require a trip to the hospital 1/2hr away ......
2nd night, I hung it off his bedside 'hand rail' so that he had a better chance of sleeping - which he did ..... and I will get a wedge type pillow of some sort, to put against his back, to prevent him turning 'away' and stretching the tubing - as it is not very long!! So he can now sleep on his back, side or tummy - but only FACING the handrail with the bottle attached (not facing away.). Such a steep learning curve! - If you are good at sewing - Here's a 'how to' add the zip to that angled 'shoulder join' ....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7bIX-nUUMA - OK ...Hubby's Picc line went in today in the right hand side .... I hope the portacath can as well, so the seatbelt doesn't become a worry - as he never drives now, so always the passenger - but chances are, it'll be the other side! :( ...
My sister is going to make a couple of TShirts with the zips (2) - one short sleeved for summer & one long sleeved (winter) - so that will be good.
So .... maybe a short sleeved tshirt under a heavier shirt for the initial infusion (it is still quite cold here!) We go back tomorrow for a 'look/see' to make sure it isn't weeping ..... then his chemo starts again on Wed after a 3 week break - with the 'bag/cassette' attached to him for 48hrs. I'll see what the Onc Girls recommend for him to wear at night with it - so it doesn't annoy him too much ..... I do think the snug tshirt may be the way to go as he wears one anyway, instead of PJs.
He's 'accepted' the picc line so far but with his dementia - that could change at any time as he doesn't really understand what is going on. ..... I actually wasn't there when they took him in to 'do it', as they hadn't told me I had to get him 'admitted' - so had to go to the other end of the hospital to do that - even tho it was just a 'procedure' & not 'surgery' ....
grrrr just another hiccup in the many I've encountered in the last 12 months! grrr - Hadn't thought of the seat belt being a pain, thanks @wendy55 xx Hope you are going ok xx
Yes, REALLY frustrated at all the stuffups along with way .... :( - Hi @arpie,
my port is on my right side up near my clavicle,the only thing that annoys me is when driving or a passenger, is the bloody seat belt,I sometimes have to keep pushing it away off the port itself,otherwise I forget its there,I havent used it in a while and just go up to the local chemo suite every 6 weeks to get it flushed,what a pity hubby has to go through the trauma of having a picc line then having to have a port inserted that is really unfair,
thinking of you both,
wendy55 - @arpie my port was on the right side as my mastectomy was on the left.
- @arpie I wore singlets to make access to the port easy. Fantastic your sister can sew some zips into hubbys tops.
- My sister is going to make a couple of shirts with zips for the treatment ..... and I reckon a nice snug TShirt for him to wear overnight will do the trick to hold the pump/bag in pace .... as he always wears a tshirt to bed.
- I had a port near the top of my chest area - a bit of Spain as it sat just where the top of most bras were but I shouldn't imagine that will bother your husband :-) I just word clothing that could be pulled away from the are easily for access.
- I did a search on picc clothing - can see shirts with zips Down front ; the other I thought that had possibilities was a zip along the joint between front and back of shirt on shoulder -that would give you easier access ?
