Discharge Instructions: Caring for Your Gastrostomy Tube (G-Tube)
You have been discharged with a gastrostomy tube, or G-tube. The G-tube was inserted through your abdominal wall and into your stomach to provide you with food, fluids, and medication. Your G-tube may move in and out slightly. If the tube comes out all the way, don’t put it back in. Call your doctor immediately (not the next morning) as the G-tube tracts through the skin close very quickly, often within 24 hours.
General Guidelines for Use
Wash your hands thoroughly before starting your feeding.
During the feeding and for 1 hour after, sit in a chair or sit up in bed.
Before feeding begins, check to see that your stomach is empty.
Insert the tip of an empty syringe into the end of the G-tube.
Pull back to withdraw contents of the stomach.
Don’t begin the feeding if more than 100 ml remains from the previous feeding.
Clean the area around the tube with mild soap and water.
Pat the area dry during bathing and as needed.
Clean the area more often if it becomes wet or weepy.
Keep the flange a few millimeters off the skin (just enough room to accommodate a gauze sponge). Pulling the flange too tightly can damage the skin, but leaving the flange too loose leads to leaking around the G-tube. The medical team will cover these guideliens prior to hospital discharge.
The name of my feeding supplement/formula is:
___________________________________________
Amount per feeding:
___________________________________________
Times per day:
___________________________________________
Amount of water used to flush tube:
___________________________________________
Gravity Feeding Method
Fill the feeding bag with the prescribed amount of formula and run the fluid to the end of the tube to clear out any air. Clamp the tube.
Connect the end of the feeding bag tubing to the G-tube.
Hang the bag at least 18 inches above the level of your G-tube.
Open the clamp and allow the formula to flow into the G-tube.
Follow with the prescribed amount of water.
After each feeding, rinse the bag and tubing. Every 24 hours, wash with soapy water and rinse thoroughly.
Pump Feeding Method
Fill the feeding bag with the prescribed amount of formula and run the fluid to the end of the tube to clear out any air. Clamp the tube.
Connect the end of the feeding bag tubing to the G-tube. Set the pump rate of flow to the prescribed rate per hour.
Open the clamp on the tubing; press the start button on your pump.
When feeding is complete, disconnect the feeding set.
Connect the tip of an empty syringe to the feeding tube and slowly push in the prescribed amount of water.
After each feeding, rinse the bag and tubing. Every 24 hours, wash with soapy water and rinse thoroughly.
Syringe Feeding Method
Remove the plunger from a syringe and connect the syringe to the G-tube.
Hold the syringe upright and pour the formula into the syringe.
Refill the syringe as the formula reaches the bottom of the syringe.
Repeat the process until the prescribed amount of formula is given.
Follow the feeding with the prescribed amount of water.
After each feeding, rinse the bag and tubing. Every 24 hours, wash with soapy water and rinse thoroughly.
Follow-Up
Make a follow-up appointment as directed by our staff.
When to Call Your Doctor
Call your doctor right away if you have any of the following:
A tube that is dislodged from the stomach, call immediately
Vomiting
Fever above 101.5°F (38.5°C)
Diarrhea that lasts more than 2 days
Signs of infection (redness, swelling, or warmth at the tube site)
Drainage from the tube site