Feature
The importance of sustainable period products
Can period pants offer a solution to support young people to better manage their periods in hospital and improve our carbon footprint ? Jacqueline Gordon believes so .
A s an occupational therapist I was looking for ways to improve our carbon footprint and it started me thinking .
Imagine you are a young person in hospital for an operation and you have your first period . It ’ s scary and difficult to manage , you weren ’ t expecting it and you aren ’ t prepared . You hope that the hospital can offer you something .
As occupational therapists , we problem solve with people to find easier ways to do what they want or need to do .
Many young people in the hospital who we were seeing were not able to manage their periods with traditional disposable products , due to poor hand function , understanding or mobility , and so we started issuing and offering period pants as a solution .
This enabled anyone who could put on their pants to manage their own periods . The feedback we have had from families is great .
One parent said : ‘ It ’ s a complete game changer ! She is independent now .’ While patients have commented : ‘ I feel so good not having to ask Mum to help ’. And ‘ I thought they would be horrible , but they are really comfortable .’
Realising this was a sustainability as well as disability issue , we have tried to expand on this , having taken advice about the safety and suitability of reusable period products from medical professionals .
We can now provide information for families about other options , including menstrual cups and reusable pads , all of which is now on the Great Ormand Street Hospital website . Visit www . gosh . nhs . uk / conditions-and-treatments / general-health-advice / period-products /.
Periods and pre-admission
We use an electronic patient records system where we have added questions on the preadmission checklist to ask the young person about their periods and what to expect when they are in the hospital .
This means every child admitted over a certain age is asked and given information about the fact that anaesthetics can unexpectedly induce periods and directed to the website for information about sustainable products .
Shortened information sheets have been printed out and put in all toilets around the hospital . These have received good feedback as well from a variety of sources , particularly the LGBTQIA + group , who appreciated the inclusive language used .
Impact of these changes
The impact so far has been significant for families and young people and we hope to introduce it to staff :
• Reduces disposable protection – less plastic produced .
50 OTnews February 2023