Recent telephone conversation:
Relative: I'm worried that mum cannot manage washing and dressing herself.
Me: Well actually, we carried out a wash and dress assessment and she managed it independently and safely.
Relative: Yes, but she is wearing the hospital underwear, not her own underwear. How do you know that she can manage her own underwear?
Me: Well the net pants that she is using here is not so different in design from the standard underwear. So if she can put these on, I anticipate she can manage her own underwear
Relative: Yes, but they are not the same.
Me: Yes, but the motions of sitting down, positioning the underwear to put her legs through the legs holes and pulling up the underwear is still the same.
Relative: Yes, I understand. But the underwear is not the same.
Me: *sighs internally* Ok, no problem. How about you bring in her own underwear and we can practice with those?
*Hangs up phone
10 years as an OT, and here I am today, having a very serious conversation about underwear.
I think of those distant sparkly-eyed days, immediately post university. I was going to save the world, one commode at a time. If I could go back in time and confront that sparkly-eyed me, I would grab her by the shoulders and shake her. Don’t be stupid, I would say, you will be saving the world by having serious conversations about underwear.
*Please note that characters are fictional to ensure anonymity
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