Using a bedpan comes down to choosing the right type, positioning it correctly, and keeping the person comfortable and clean throughout. Whether you’re a caregiver helping someone in bed or a patient figuring this out for yourself after surgery, the process is straightforward once you know the steps.
Choosing the Right Bedpan
There are two main types of bedpans, and picking the right one matters for comfort and safety.
A standard (regular) bedpan is the larger of the two. It has a deeper bowl and works well for someone who can lift their hips or be rolled onto it without pain. This is the default choice for most situations.
A fracture bedpan is smaller and has one flat end, making it much easier to slide under someone who can’t move much. It’s designed for people recovering from hip fractures, hip replacements, or lower-leg injuries. If the person you’re helping has limited mobility or experiences pain when shifting their weight, the fracture pan is almost always the better option.
Bariatric bedpans are also available for larger individuals, with weight capacities up to 1,200 pounds. They feature a wider, contoured seat designed to prevent spills.
What You’ll Need
Gather everything before you start so neither of you has to pause mid-process. You’ll need:
- The bedpan (standard or fracture, depending on the person’s condition)
- Disposable gloves
- A waterproof pad or towel to place under the person’s hips and protect the mattress
- Toilet paper or wet wipes
- A damp washcloth for hand washing afterward
- A blanket or sheet for privacy
Placing the Bedpan
Start by explaining what you’re about to do. This sounds small, but bedpan use is genuinely uncomfortable and embarrassing for most people. A brief heads-up helps them feel less caught off guard. Close the door, pull any curtains, and if visitors are in the room, ask them to step out.
Put on your gloves. Then help the person roll slightly to one side, or ask them to bend their knees and press their feet into the mattress to lift their hips (this is sometimes called “bridging”). While their hips are raised or turned, slide a waterproof pad underneath to catch any spills.
Now position the bedpan. For a standard bedpan, the deeper end points toward the person’s feet, and the flatter, open rim sits under their tailbone. The person should be centered on the pan so nothing spills over the edges. For a fracture bedpan, the flat end with the handle faces toward the feet, and the pan slides under from the front with minimal lifting required.
Once the bedpan is in place, raise the head of the bed to a comfortable semi-upright angle if you can. This position is closer to sitting on a toilet, which makes it easier to go and reduces straining. Cover the person’s legs and midsection with a sheet or blanket, and leave toilet paper within arm’s reach.
Giving Them Time
If the person is alert and able to clean themselves, step away. Leave a call bell or something they can use to signal you when they’re done. Staying in the room when it’s not necessary adds to the discomfort and can actually contribute to constipation. Research on hospitalized stroke patients found that creating a more private, relaxed environment for toileting helped reduce new-onset constipation and improved outcomes overall.
That said, don’t leave someone on a bedpan for too long. The hard surface puts concentrated pressure on the skin over the tailbone and hips, exactly the spots most vulnerable to pressure injuries. There’s no firm rule for a maximum time, but the general principle for preventing skin breakdown is to relieve pressure on any one area every one to two hours. In practice, a bedpan session should be as brief as the person needs it to be, not a minute longer.
Removing the Bedpan
When the person signals they’re finished, put on a fresh pair of gloves. Help them wipe front to back if they need assistance, or let them do it themselves if they’re able. Then ask them to lift their hips again (or gently roll them to one side) while you slide the bedpan out carefully, keeping it level to avoid spills.
Set the bedpan aside on a stable surface. Clean the skin around the buttocks and groin gently with toilet paper or wet wipes, then pat the area completely dry. Don’t scrub. If the person is bedridden long-term, applying a moisturizing barrier cream to the skin helps prevent breakdown from repeated moisture exposure. Offer a damp washcloth or hand wipe so they can clean their hands.
Remove and replace the waterproof pad if it’s soiled, smooth out any wrinkled sheets underneath the person (wrinkles create pressure points), and make sure they’re settled comfortably before you step away.
Emptying and Cleaning
Empty the bedpan contents into the toilet. If you’re in a medical setting and the care team is tracking urine output, measure it first. Rinse the bedpan with cold water (hot water can set proteins and odors into the surface), then wash it with soap and warm water or a disinfectant. Most plastic bedpans can be sanitized this way between uses. Some medical-grade bedpans are autoclavable for sterilization.
Dispose of your gloves and wash your hands thoroughly.
Protecting Skin Over Time
For someone using a bedpan regularly, skin care becomes a real concern. Urine and stool left on skin, even briefly, cause irritation and increase the risk of pressure sores. Clean the area immediately after every use and dry it fully. Use a soft sponge or cloth rather than scrubbing, and apply a skin protectant or moisture barrier cream daily. Avoid talcum powder and harsh soaps, which can dry and damage skin further.
If you notice any redness that doesn’t fade within 30 minutes of relieving pressure, or any broken skin around the tailbone or hips, that’s an early sign of a pressure injury forming. Switching to a fracture pan (which has a lower profile and less contact with the skin) or using extra padding can help reduce the pressure.
Making It Less Uncomfortable
The physical awkwardness of a bedpan is hard to avoid entirely, but a few things help. Warming a metal or cold plastic bedpan under warm running water before placing it makes the initial contact less jarring. Lightly dusting the rim with cornstarch can reduce friction against the skin. Raising the head of the bed, even slightly, makes the position feel more natural than lying flat.
The emotional side matters just as much. Bedpan use is consistently cited as a source of embarrassment and loss of dignity for patients. Simple things make a real difference: closing curtains fully, keeping your tone casual and matter-of-fact, not rushing the person, and checking afterward if there’s anything they’d prefer done differently next time. Keeping the call light within reach so they don’t have to shout is another detail that protects their sense of control during a vulnerable moment.