Syringes and tubes can be a bugger to clean. Here are some tips we have discovered over the years.
Cleaning Syringes
(This first tip for cleaning syringes goes to my husband who invented it)
When you are being discharged from being inpatient there are usually a few of these laying around. They are called hemostats. They are like medical pliers. At our children's hospital they throw them away, they are not sterilized. So I just ask if I can take them home. They have no problems with that. It looks like you can also buy them on Amazon for under $5. https://www.amazon.com/Aven-Stainless-Hemostat-Straight-Length/dp/B003E48ETS/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1495677863&sr=8-5&keywords=hemostat
Cut a small piece of rag (it might take a few tries to find a good size) and lock it into the hemostat. This is now your cleaning tool for cleaning out syringes.
It works on 10 mL, 12 mL, 20 mL, 30 mL. (I am not sure about 3 and 5 mL...I don't use that size of syringes.
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When the rag gets old or smelly, just cut a new small piece of rag.
Cleaning large (60 mL) syringes
We use a normal baby bottle cleaning brush to clean 60 mL syringes.
Cleaning Feeding Tube Extensions
This is called a "Peg Cleaning Brush". You order them from your DME where you get your extensions from. They do not require an additional RX. Insurance/Medicaid will pay for 1 per month.
Unlock the tube (if locked) and push the peg cleaning brush through the tube a few times to clean it out.
The end should have this little tail on the end. The tail eventually falls off and looks like the next picture.
The tail has fallen off of this Peg Cleaning Brush above, it is time to throw it away. (They still work without the tail, I just use it as my sign that I have been using it for a while.)
I also use the Peg Cleaning Brush to clean out the tip of the syringes.
I use a regular baby bottle nipple brush for the catheter tip end of a feeding tube extension.
The tools of the trade!
How do you clean your syringes and feeding tubes? Comment below.
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