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How to Make Changing a PEG Tube’s Dressing Easier
Changing a PEG tube’s dressing can be awkward, messy and a dread to face every day.
A cancer survivor explains how to get through this without all the dread.
PEG stands for percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy. In this procedure a flexible feeding tube is placed through the patient’s abdominal wall and into their stomach.
The patient is then tasked with maintenance of the PEG tube to prevent infection.
At 61 Ed Rossman was diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer.
He explains, “While shaving before going out on a Saturday night, I discovered a lump on my neck.
“At the time, my sister was also being treated for a brain tumor, and as her main caregiver I was afraid I had swollen glands or some other contagious disease, so I made an immediate appointment with a doctor that Monday morning.
“I was diagnosed with cancer at the base of the tongue, which was cured after chemotherapy and 40 rounds of radiation therapy in the throat region.
“I had a PEG tube installed into my stomach, because swallowing became extremely painful.
“I never looked forward to changing the dressing around the PEG tube, even though I knew it was important to stop infection.
“It was awkward, messy, not painful, but sufficiently weird when I accidently would lose hold of the tube, and it would tug in my insides — thanks to gravity pulling it down.”
How One Cancer Survivor Came up with a Way to Make Changing a Peg Tube’s Dressing … Almost Fun
Ed Rossman shows where his PEG tube was inserted.
Ed continues, “So I started playing various long tunes to make it a better experience, my ‘music therapy.’
“I settled on ‘Time Has Come Today’ by the Chambers Brothers, because it took roughly 14 minutes to take the tape off the gauze, take that off and dispose of it, clean any dried ooze, clean around the insertion point just below the solar plexus, spread antibiotic cream on and around the wound, replace fresh gauze and re-tape.
“When I started this process while singing and head bopping to ‘Time Has Come Today,’ it actually became fun.
“Something I would do around the same time every day and not blow off.”
Ed Rossman is author of the book, “A Guy’s Guide to Throat Cancer,” available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and iTunes.
He also runs a Facebook page (link in his name above), “told from a guy’s perspective using sports, music and faith quotes, emphasizes qualities like discipline, strength and attitude to get you through cancer or any other serious illness,” says Ed.
“It’s informative and inspirational for patients and their caregivers alike!”
As of 2023, Ed has been cancer-free.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Gilo1969, CC BY-SA 3.0/creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Wikimedia Commons
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Toxic Diet Culture vs. Toxic Junk Food Culture
Some call the diet industry toxic, but what about the junk food industry that uses slick advertising to brainwash us and rakes in a sh*t-ton more money?
Newly Diagnosed with Anal Cancer? Step-by-Step Help by Survivor
First make sure your “hemorrhoid” isn’t really anal cancer.
Employee Turnover is Expensive. DEI Helps Especially When Autistics are Hired
For companies struggling with high employee turnover rates, hiring autistic people can help solve this problem.
According to Gallup, employee turnover costs businesses $1 trillion and is fixable.
In addition to the cost of hiring a new employee, there is a loss of knowledge, productivity and relationships as well as potential morale issues.
There are many things a company can and should do to keep their employees engaged and satisfied to retain them. One is a renewed emphasis on DEI programs.
DEI stands for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Some take it one step farther and add a B which stands for Belonging.
Diversity is beneficial in bringing in new perspectives and reducing bias in treating differences in people equally.
Equity is about giving people what they need to be successful. This goes a long way to retaining employees, and coupled with inclusion you have a powerful combination.
Inclusion is the actions taken by the company and employees to foster an inclusive environment.
Belonging takes it one step further where employees feel at ease to be themselves. This is a key to having a strong company culture.
An employee who has what they need to be successful, and a feeling of belonging, is less likely to leave — especially when you consider this is a level most other companies do not achieve.
In the 1990s and early 2000s I worked for two Fortune 100 companies. While they did not have DEI programs per se, the first created a culture very much aligned with the objectives of DEI.
Even though the company was large it felt like a family. The second did not value people, and culturally, the difference was stark.
No effort was made for inclusion, and diversity was largely non-existent.
DEI programs can help immensely for those with disabilities. I am autistic, and in society we generally do not achieve the level of belonging.
We are largely excluded, and inclusion can seem like a dream.
In terms of turnover, autistic employees have lower turnover rates. We also tend to be more productive.
Sadly, it is reported that autistic unemployment rates are as high as 85%.
This is due in part to many Autistics not being hired in the first place. We don’t survive the hiring process.
The way we are wired tends to set off alarm bells in neurotypicals.
First impressions count a lot in interviews, and many of us are viewed negatively with a lack of eye contact or other “awkwardness.”
A good DEI problem would solve for this. Autism is considered a disability and protected by the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) to prevent against job application discrimination when qualified.
And yet, discrimination is the norm. I’ve met with dozens of Autistics to talk about their experiences in the hiring process as well as hundreds more on social media.
Most do not disclose they are autistic since they have been met with interviews being cancelled or interviews cut short. This is the opposite of inclusion.
Equity is about getting what we need to be successful. In disclosing what we need, such as simple accommodations like getting the questions ahead of time, we are largely met with discrimination.
Commonly, it’s, “That wouldn’t be fair to the other applicants.”
Well, that’s an equality argument, not equity. This contributes to the 85% unemployment number.
Organizations have a choice to do the right thing. They can be inclusive to create a sense of belonging. It’s in their financial interest.
It’s also in their interest in driving productivity and innovation. Autistic folks tend to be very good here as well as in creativity, depending on the person.
The hiring process and how employees are treated is a choice. With progress and new generations of people entering the workplace I am hopeful DEI programs will continue and begin to include autistic folks.
Peter Mann is the Founder and CEO of Oransi, a leading manufacturer of air filtration and ventilation products. Diagnosed autistic in adulthood, Peter is a United States Military Veteran, having served four years in the Navy, including a tour in the Red Sea during the Gulf War.
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