Thousands of patients who need catheters to go to the toilet are suffering painful bladder infections because the NHS fails to remove them in time, experts say.
The flexible tube, which is used to empty the bladder and collect urine in a drainage bag, is used long-term by around 90,000 people in the UK.
The device is supposed to be replaced every three months or removed within three days if a patient begins to show signs of a bladder infection.
However, The Mail on Sunday has learned that a shortage of qualified nurses to remove the tubes means many patients are forced to use bacteria-infested catheters and regularly end up in A&E with serious infections.
Catheter patients must also be given antibiotics quickly to treat bladder infections, but experts say many are forced to wait weeks to see a doctor who can give them the pills.
Thousands of patients who need catheters to go to the toilet are suffering painful bladder infections because the NHS fails to remove them in time (File image)
The Mail on Sunday has learned that a lack of qualified nurses to remove the tubes means many patients are forced to use bacteria-infested catheters (File image)
Surprisingly, some patients with contaminated catheters have been asked to replace the tubes themselves, a complicated task known as self-catheterization, which many people find difficult to perform.
One patient who has struggled to access catheter care on the NHS is Evan Francis, 28, from the Isle of Sheppey, who has ended up in A&E eight times since April due to bladder infections.
The public relations professional suffers from Fowler’s syndrome, a bladder disorder that prevents young women from urinating normally. Since the catheter was placed in January, Evan has suffered a new bladder infection almost every month.
The infections leave Evan with debilitating back pain and a constant need to urinate.
While antibiotics can combat the worst of the infection, if the catheter is not removed, the bacteria will inevitably return.
However, Evan says doctors at the hospital have repeatedly refused to replace contaminated catheters with new ones. “Every time I come to the emergency room in pain, I’m told the doctors there don’t have the training to remove catheters,” Evan says.
“Then I have to wait until my next appointment with the nurse, which means I can spend up to two months with a catheter full of bacteria.”
After repeated complaints, Evan was told she could change the catheters herself at home, but she was unable to do so.
“It’s a complicated task that not everyone can do,” he says. “And if done wrong, it can lead to even more infections.”
“I know lots of other women who have had similar experiences. It feels like the NHS is giving us the runaround.” Patients who can’t control their bladder are given catheters.
Catheter patients must also be given antibiotics quickly to treat bladder infections, but experts say many are forced to wait weeks to see a doctor (file image)
Two types of catheter are used in the NHS. Some people use a temporary device, known as an intermittent catheter, which is inserted whenever the patient needs to go to the toilet. Once the bladder is empty, the catheter is removed.
However, most people prefer an indwelling catheter (which stays in place for weeks and is connected to a bag attached to the leg or waist) because it is more comfortable. However, indwelling catheters significantly increase the risk of bladder infections.
“The urinary tract contains several types of cells that fight incoming infections,” says Professor Roger Bayston, a surgical infection specialist at the University of Nottingham.
“But when a catheter is inserted, bacteria can travel through the tube, bypassing these protective cells, and reach the bladder.”
Studies suggest that approximately one in ten catheter patients will suffer recurrent bladder infections caused by the catheter.
“We have seen patients with catheter-related bladder infections so severe they are on the verge of suicide,” says Professor Bayston.
In the US, most patients change their catheter every month, but in the UK this is done every 12 weeks.
If there are signs of infection, the catheter should be removed before then. This is usually done by district nurses or doctors who make house calls. However, experts say this is rarely the case.
“There is a shortage of district nurses, which means some patients may wait a long time to have their catheter changed,” says Professor Bayston.
An NHS specialist, who asked to remain anonymous, said: “Catheter care in some care homes is very poor. Residents are having to wear catheters for too long and more infections are occurring as a result.”
One solution would be to create a catheter that repels infections.
However, experts say healthcare technology companies are not interested in funding trials. Another important change, they add, would be to allow nurses to prescribe antibiotics for catheter-related infections.
NHS England has been contacted for comment.