Discharge Instructions: Self-Catheterization for People with a Penis

Gather your supplies

You will need:

• Soap and warm water or a moist towelette

• Clean catheter

• Water-soluble lubricating jelly (not petroleum jelly)

• Toilet or basin

Get ready

• Wash your hands and your penis. Use warm soapy water. You can also use a moist towelette. If you are uncircumcised, pull back the foreskin before washing.

• Lubricate the catheter with the water-soluble lubricating jelly.

  • Lubricate 2 to 4 inches of the catheter tip.

  • Place the other end of the catheter over the toilet or basin.

  Lubricate catheter.

Empty your bladder

• Insert the catheter.

  • Grasp the tip of your penis, holding your penis horizontally from your body.

  • Slowly put the catheter into your urethra. Move it in about 6 to 8 inches or until urine begins to flow. If it doesn’t go in, do this: Take a deep breath and bear down as if you're trying to urinate.

  • If you feel a sharp pain, remove the catheter. Then try again.

  Insert catheter.

• Empty your bladder.

  • When the urine starts to flow, advance the catheter tip one more inch.

  • Slightly lower your penis.

  • When the urine stops flowing, slowly remove the catheter.

  Empty urine.

Catheter care

If you use a disposable catheter, use a new one each time you empty your bladder. Throw the catheter away when you’re done. If your catheters are reusable, do the following after each use:

• Wash your hands with soap and warm water.

• Clean the catheter with soap and warm water.

• Rinse the catheter, making sure there is no soap left inside or on it.

• Let the catheter air-dry before storing.

• Store the catheter in a clean, dry container, such as a plastic bag that seals at the top.

• Throw away a catheter if the plastic looks cloudy. Follow your healthcare providers instructions on when the catheter should be changed.

• Wash your hands again. If you used a basin, wash it out.

Follow-up care

Make a follow-up appointment, or as directed.

When to call your healthcare provider

Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of the following:

• You cannot move the catheter farther in because of resistance

• Continued feeling of bladder pressure even after inserting the catheter

• Fever above 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, or as directed by your provider

• Chills

• Burning in the urinary tract, penis, or pubic area

• Nausea and vomiting

• Aching in your lower back

• Cloudy,or foul smelling urine

• Specks (sediment) or mucus in the urine

• Bloody (pink or red) urine