2. Urinary (Foley) catheter While its primary purpose is to drain the bladder, a urinary – or Foley – catheter may serve a dual function in patient monitoring.

The inflation valve on female catheters can become caught between the thighs in patients who are obese, confined to bed or wheelchair users, and this can lead to soreness (Dougherty and Lister, 2015).

A study of 1,586 hospitalized patients age 70 and older at two Ohio hospitals indicates that 24 percent were given medically unnecessary urinary catheters, according to investigators led by a ...