Case Review: A Manitoba Care Home Cut Incontinence Brief Waste With Sizing Charts

A Manitoba care home cut adult brief consumption in its heavy wing by about a fifth in one quarter without changing brands, changing distributors, or tightening its resident-handling policy. The lever was a sizing chart taped to the cart and a nightly change count written on the wall. This is an anonymised facility review of how the audit was run.

What did the 30-day baseline actually show?

We paired thirty days of store-room issues against unit census. The heavy wing was issuing 6.2 briefs per resident-day across 38 residents, well above the 4.6 that the absorbency rating on the pack implied was reasonable. Two patterns explained almost all of the gap: residents were being sized by body weight instead of by measured waist and hip, and overnight staff were doubling a smaller brief rather than moving one size band up.

How do you read an incontinence brief sizing chart?

Measure with a soft tape at the widest point of the hip and at the natural waist, then read across to the band that contains both numbers. Every band is a range, not a single figure, and the stretch numbers printed beside it describe how far the side panels or tabs extend, not extra absorbency. When a resident sits between two bands, size up for overnight use and for anyone with heavy loss. Re-measure monthly and after any significant weight change, because a chart read once at admission drifts out of date fast. The 3,000 ml absorbency ratings explained article walks through what those capacity figures do and do not mean.

Which product format fits which resident?

Format matters as much as size. Pull-on styles suit ambulatory residents who can stand and dress; tab-style briefs suit chair-bound and bed-bound residents because the tabs allow re-closure during a check without removing the brief.

Should overnight and heavy incontinence move up a band?

Yes. Absorbency ratings describe capacity under controlled conditions, not under a sleeping resident who does not change position for eight hours. Going up one band for overnight and heavy loss reduced night checks in this home without increasing skin issues, because staff stopped layering two thin briefs instead of using one that fit. Layering is the single most expensive workaround on the floor: it doubles unit consumption, breaks the absorbency design and makes audit counts meaningless.

Where do sizing reviews go wrong most often?

Three repeat offenders. Sizing by body weight, which ignores hip shape entirely. Reusing a soiled outer brief to stretch the count, which defeats the absorbency layer and raises skin risk. And ignoring the absorbency grade of the product on the shelf, which pushes staff into changing twice as often. Each one inflates consumption without any clinical benefit.

How do you turn a sizing chart into a waste audit?

Post the chart at the point of use, add the resident’s measured band to the care plan, and have the night team record changes on a simple tally for fourteen days. Compare issues per resident-day before and after. In this home, heavy-wing issues fell from 6.2 to 4.9 briefs per resident-day over ninety days, a reduction of about 21 per cent, with no change in product brand.

Which supplies cover the rest of the room?

The brief change is only part of the picture. For bed-bound residents, an absorbent underpad under the brief keeps linen changes down and protects the mattress. We stock the Day Comfort adult incontinence briefs, 3,000 ml, 60-pack, the adult pull-on briefs, maximum, 60-pack, and the disposable underpads, heavy absorbency, 30x36 in. Directors of care rebuilding a whole room set should start from the long-term care page and the incontinence care collection.

Related reading

• Adult incontinence briefs in bulk: an LTC procurement guide for Canada
• Dementia care and incontinence product selection strategies
• Incontinence management in Canadian long-term care for directors of care
• RCDSO-compliant sterilization records

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Frequently Asked Questions

How often should incontinence brief sizing be rechecked?

Re-measure at admission, then monthly and after any significant weight change. A band chosen once can drift out of range within weeks, and an undersized brief drives extra changes and skin risk.

Is it less expensive to double up two thin briefs instead of sizing up?

No. Layering doubles unit consumption, defeats the absorbency layer and makes the change count meaningless, so it costs more per resident-day than moving one band up.

Do overnight checks always need a larger size?

Not always a larger size, but for heavy overnight loss move up one band. The goal is matching capacity to a long unchanging interval rather than adding more product.

Can a sizing audit really reduce usage without changing product?

Yes. Measuring waist and hip, sizing up for heavy loss and pairing the brief with an underpad cut heavy-wing usage from 6.2 to 4.9 briefs per resident-day in this anonymised review.

CliniEco Medical is a licensed medical device establishment (MDEL #35334).