[nabs-l] Sanitizing canes for use in hospitals

Ryan Silveira ryan.l.silveira at gmail.com
Mon Aug 24 20:48:44 UTC 2015 

Hello,

Thank you for your e-mail.  I am currently on vacation and will return on the 7th of September, 2015.  I will periodically check my e-mail, but please do not expect an immediate response.  Thank you very much.


Ryan L. Silveira
חיים אהרן בן אברהם

On Aug 17, 2015, at 11:23 PM, Kaiti Shelton via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:

> Elizabeth,
> 
> I'll put this on the list just so others might better understand the
> purpose of working in the preop/postop setting as an MT and why the
> issue is important there, however I may be contacting you off-list
> because until recently I had very little experience in hospitals that
> I remembered.  Most of my personal experiences happened as a toddler
> and I only vaguely remember my last eye surgery I had at age 4.
> 
> Music Therapy is growing within hospitals, and has especially been
> recognized for its helpfulness in pediatric hospitals.  In the preop
> setting it can be used to help a child (or an adult if warranted)
> relax.  A trained music therapist knows how to use music to distract a
> patient from their pain or decrease their anxiety.  This can be done
> by having the patient listen to soothing music with or without verbal
> instruction for relaxation, using the music to change aspects of the
> physiology like to bring down a fast heart rate/steady breathing, or
> to distract a child while nurses are starting an IV or performing
> other tasks.  In postop it can be used to address pain or to help a
> patient remain calm if they tend to be anxious/upset.  While I've seen
> more literature on use in preop situations, I am interested in the
> possibility of doing postop work, too.
> 
> On 8/15/15, Elizabeth Mohnke via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Hello Kaiti,
> 
> Can you please explain how you see yourself working as a music therapist in
> the pre-op and post-op setting? As someone who has first-hand experience
> with the pre-op and post-op experience as it relates to having surgical
> procedures, I do not understand how a music therapist would work in this
> type of setting.
> 
> However, working in the pre-op and post-op setting is completely different
> than working in any type of intensive care unit. The type of scrubs used
> for
> these two settings are different and are made out of different types of
> materials. If you are looking for something disposal to use for your cane,
> I
> would suggest contacting the national office to enquire about obtaining the
> long plastic bags they use when shipping canes. I believe something like
> this would work for your situation.
> 
> I would be more than happy to share my specific experience being in a
> hospital as well as visiting people in the hospital off list as I do not
> believe it would be appropriate to share this information on the email
> list.
> 
> I hope this leads you in the right direction in finding a solution to your
> specific situation.
> 
> Warm regards,
> Elizabeth
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kaiti Shelton
> via nabs-l
> Sent: Saturday, August 15, 2015 6:00 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Kaiti Shelton <crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Sanitizing canes for use in hospitals
> 
> Hi all,
> 
> I think that in certain situations you would put on booties with scrubs for
> full protection, but it is specific.  I just feel like I need to be
> prepared
> for any situation in my career, especially if I work in preop and postop
> like I would like to do.
> 
> Changing the cane tips would be to prevent tracking unwanted substances
> that
> might spill onto the floor to other places.  E.G, blood, spilled meds,
> vomit
> or other liquids.  It would be an extra step because the cane tip would be
> most likely to touch these things on the floor, I would think.
> 
> The biggest challenge would be getting disposable things in mass quantities
> so I am prepared to have a stock of them.  If I get them made with a cloth
> of some sort like scrubs it wouldn't be hard to ask someone who makes
> medical stuff to sew them propperly for cheap, but the disposable ones
> would
> be more of a challenge.  I'd need something that's at least 56 inches long
> to go over my cane.
> 
> On 8/13/15, Elizabeth Mohnke via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Hello Kaiti,
> 
> I have never thought of sanitizing my cane when visiting someone in
> the hospital before. If you could find some kind of plastic tubing, I
> think that would probably work. If I remember correctly, the scrubs I
> have seen people throw away in ICU units are plastic like aprons that
> tie in the back. So I think your plastic tubing should work just fine.
> 
> However, I am a bit confused about changing out cane tips though. I
> would consider this to be the same as changing one's shoes when
> visiting different patients in different rooms. From what I can
> recall, I have never seen this as any kind of protocol when working
> with high risk  patients before. If anything, I would think you would
> want to sterilize the part of the cane that you touch rather than the
> part that touches the floor as this would be the part of the cane that
> would most likely come in contact with the patient.
> 
> I have visited someone in ICU several times, and this was never really
> an issue. However, I can also understand your concern. I would think
> the Lysol wipes would be sufficient for most situations. For the times
> when the Lysol wipes are not sufficient, some kind of plastic tubing
> you can throw away when you are done visiting the patient should work
> just
> fine.
> 
> I hope this helps you with your situation.
> 
> Warm regards,
> Elizabeth
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kaiti
> Shelton via nabs-l
> Sent: Thursday, August 13, 2015 10:35 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Kaiti Shelton <crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Sanitizing canes for use in hospitals
> 
> Hi, Jamie,
> 
> This was sort of what I was thinking about.  It would definitely work
> in most situations.  The only tricky part will be figuring out
> something for those very risky situations.  I know some units have
> scrubs that are washed, while ones on intensive care units are just
> thrown away to minimize spread of germs in the wash rooms.  I think
> then getting some sort of plastic tubing might work, possibly?
> 
> I do like the idea of keeping a few cane tips around, or possibly
> getting scrub-like covers made for the tip.  I haven't decided how
> feasible it will be for me to switch tips if I need to do my job
> quickly, but it's an option.
> The other idea I have since come up with is to just keep multiple
> canes around so I have one that stays home from the hospital or at
> least away from any of the patients, one that I keep on-hand for
> everyday cases and those with minimal protection required (like the
> little sheet cover), and a third kept somewhere else that I would just
> use for special cases with high risk of contamination and I would
> clean thurroughly immediately after each use.
> 
> I'm still looking for someone who has experience in this, but so far
> no one seems to be or know of an authority on the issue.  This has
> given me ideas, though, and it probably won't be hard to have covers
> made.  If I have several of them ready to go, I can change them out each
> day.
> 
> On 8/13/15, Jamie Principato via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> One thing you could do is make a sanitary sheath for your cane out of
> the same material as the scrubs and head/shoe coverings you already
> use in sterile environments. It would be like a cloth tube that you
> slide your cane into tip first and tie off at the top of the handle
> with a
> drawstring.
> You'll need to wash it and store it somewhere clean like you would
> your scrubs, but it would be more convenient than washing the entire
> cane by hand. You might also consider keeping a clean tip that you
> only ever use in sterile environments and swapping out tips before
> washing
> your hands.
> 
> -Jamie
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
> On Aug 13, 2015, at 6:08 PM, Kaiti Shelton via nabs-l
> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
> 
> Hi all,
> 
> I'm hoping to work in a hospital for my job, and recently was there
> to visit an ill relative.  It occured to me while I was putting on
> gloves and a gown that in some situations I will need to clean my
> cane as well.  Music therapists do work in isolated areas on
> occasion, and also may work in preop or postop.  In this case, I was
> visiting someone who had an infection that could be contageous.  The
> idea of washing my hands and scrubbing up, but not sanitizing my
> cane, then washing up afterwards and touching the cane again kind of
> grossed me out.  Not only could it track in germs from the outside
> to the sick person in the room, but it also could transfer anything
> the person has back to me.
> 
> I already do sanitize my cane because I work a lot with kids and/or
> elderly people, but in this situation Lysol wipes won't always be
> sufficient.  Has anyone had experience with this?  I'm just asking
> around and will try the human services division as well.  I've also
> asked an Orientation and Mobility Speciailist if he's ever seen this
> done.
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> --
> Kaiti Shelton
> University of Dayton-Music Therapy
> President, Ohio Association of Blind Students 2013-Present
> Secretary, The National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts
> Division
> 2015-2016
> 
> "You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back!"
> 
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> 
> --
> Kaiti Shelton
> University of Dayton-Music Therapy
> President, Ohio Association of Blind Students 2013-Present Secretary,
> The National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division
> 2015-2016
> 
> "You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back!"
> 
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> 
> 
> --
> Kaiti Shelton
> University of Dayton-Music Therapy
> President, Ohio Association of Blind Students 2013-Present Secretary, The
> National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division 2015-2016
> 
> "You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back!"
> 
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> 
> 
> -- 
> Kaiti Shelton
> University of Dayton-Music Therapy
> President, Ohio Association of Blind Students 2013-Present
> Secretary, The National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts
> Division 2015-2016
> 
> "You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back!"
> 
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