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CAPD and travel

Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 10:59 pm
by AL. UK
Hi All

I now seem to be settled on Four exchange bags daily.At the moment no problems.
Has anyone ever done a bag exchange in a car?I would be grateful for any advice for or against this.
I would like to go away for a few days and feel the time in between bag exchanges would not allow me any freedom to travel very far.
If anyone has any experience on this please let me know.

AL. UK

Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 1:51 am
by Anne in Va
Hi Al,

I have done CAPD exchanges many times in the car. I would use the little hanger in the car to hang the bag. Then put the drain bag on the floor, inside the empty cover of the dialysate bag and then inside a plastic grocery store bag. You could also use a bin bag or place the drain bag in a wash basin. I would empty the bags later. An exchange may take a little longer as you usually have to hang the bag a bit lower than at home.

I would be very careful to close the windows and turn off air conditioning/ heater blowers for the few seconds it took to connect. I have even done an exchange while the car was moving. I was not driving and the connecting was done while stopped. I did it on the interstates [motorways] here in the US. These roads are long and straight - I would not recommend an exchange on twisty country roads!

You can use antibacterial liquid like Purell on your hands. I even used it at home just before connecting/disconnecting. Although I washed my hands I knew they were already 'germy' and that the danger of a touch contamination was during connect/disconnect.

Remember to have everyone in the car mask. One time, my friend and her teenage kids came over from Scotland [E.K.], they thought it was a great adventure and asked many questions about dialysis so I had a wonderful teaching opportunity.

The great thing about PD is you CAN take it with you. Just throw the supplies in the car and go. You may have to be a little inventive but PD folks usually learn to be very good at inventing! Don't think "I can't do it" but "how can I do it?" Think solution instead of problem! I am sure you will find people on this board who will be only to glad to tell you about their experiences in all kinds of situations and you can store them away for later reference.

Good luck and have a safe trip!

Anne

go for it!

Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 12:02 pm
by Nikki
:D Go for it al! I did an exchange sitting on a wall once, I attached it in the car and there was no problem! I also travelled to spain too, they ship the bags there and you just carry on as if at home, but being careful of the water of course!! Good luck! Nikki. xx

PD on the go.

Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 12:44 pm
by JMan
Tip from a PD using friend of mine, is to use a baby changing bag for stuff.. They unzip to provide a water impermeable surface that can be cleaned down with alchohol wipes as per a table. All you need underneath is a hard surface.

I've known people do exchanges in cars, up mountains, on hilltops etc etc..

travel and CAPD

Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 11:37 pm
by amanda in CA
Hi, I used to be on CAPD and used to dialyse in the car or wherever I happened to be (within reason, e.g not in a toilet). Before I started using the cycler I used whatever surface was available, although when I did it ten years ago I used to use a tray. to be honest, I don't think that it is essential to have a clean surface, but I have used the inside of the outer bag as a surface when doing CAPD. In a car, I used to use a bacteriacidal rub, apply it once, rub it in and then reapply it if I was in a location where I would have to go into public bathrooms, since I reckoned that by the time that I had gone to a bathroom, washed my hands, touched doorhandles, etc. before I got to the car my hands would probably be more contaminated than before I started. To be honest, when I connect up at home for using the cycler I don't tend to wash my hands everytime given that it's the middle of the night bacteria are only transferred by contact, ie they don't have wings and so as long as I don't touch the parts that are sterile there shouldn't be a problem. Obviously I could slip and touch them but that hasn't been an issue. amanda

Posted: Wed Jul 14, 2004 7:40 pm
by Andy
AL,
I dialyzed any where i could, I even did it in the middle of a field with only cold water and a tent over my head (no not recommended but at the time it did me good).
I have a friend who did it in a car yea it may be hard 2 drain in, if you cannot get the right height but it can usually work.
Go for it, Give it a go!!!! Try any thing once!!!

Rgds
Andy

dialysis in car

Posted: Wed Jul 14, 2004 10:04 pm
by amanda in CA
Hi, when I did CAPD in a car, I used to park at the back of a motorway services car park where there were less people around and then put the bag out the car door onto the top of the roof, that gave it more height to drain in. similarily I would put the bag outside the car on the floor to drain out. amanda

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:45 pm
by salew
Al, I think you should be fine. Once you have the confidence you will be amazed where yo can switch bags. I used to exchange all over the shop. I have posted elsewhere on another thread about some of the locations. I have done an exchange on a cross channel ferry in the duty free stock room no less. Still, temptation did not get the better of me. As the others have said keep it clean and you should be fine. Let us know of your adventures and Good luck.

CAPD in the car

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2004 8:42 am
by Julie
A friend of mine once told me that he used to do CAPD in his car, and the best tip I remember him saying was that he would warm the bag up by leaving it the back window of the car so the sun would get on it. Of course that depends on the weather and in the crappy weather we're getting in the UK at the moment, that's highly unlikely, but anyway, I thought I would pass it on. :wink:

Lots of love,
Julie
x

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2004 12:12 pm
by Anne in Va
More on bag warming. I have used the bag on either the dash or the rear window of the car. You just have to be careful not to get it too warm. Usually if I was travelling around the country, I would use a heating pad set on low and a cooler just like I did at home. I would plug them in when I stopped at the hotel and carry them in the cooler in the car next day. Also, When the weather was very hot, I would just use cold bags. It can be very refreshing on a hot day to be cooled from the inside out! Again be careful, and try at home first. Some people cannot handle cold bags.

Happy travels!