Washing, grooming & feeling human

A hanging wash bag keeps everything off shared surfaces and within reach. It is particularly useful when the trip to the bathroom also involves manoeuvring a drip stand, because the whole kit travels and hangs up in one go.

Standing wet in a shared bathroom trying to make a small stiff towel go round is nobody's finest hour. A big soft bath sheet from home covers you properly, dries you quickly and is the least glamorous, most appreciated thing in the bag.

Bed baths depend on staff time. Large fragrance-free wipes let someone freshen up on their own schedule, which for a lot of patients matters more than any bunch of flowers.

Medication, anaesthetic and long nil-by-mouth waits leave a mouth that tastes of nothing good, usually at the point when brushing your teeth means a trek to the bathroom. Something strong in the locker drawer is a very small thing that helps a lot.

Plenty of medications, oxygen and long nil-by-mouth stretches leave a mouth uncomfortably dry, and there are hours when you cannot simply keep drinking. A gel or spray in the locker is something a person can reach for themselves at 3am.

Nil-by-mouth waits, dehydration and the bone-dry air on wards can leave lips cracked within a day. An unscented balm is easy to keep by the bed and use without adding another strong smell when you already feel queasy.

A wash bag gets carried to a shared bathroom and back several times a day, and the toothbrush ends up loose among everything else. A cover or a small case keeps it as yours, which matters more than it should.

Washing hair is often impossible for weeks — lines, dressings, or simply not being able to stand. Dry shampoo plus a long-handled brush restores a bit of normality without help from staff.

Air conditioning, repeated hand washing and many drugs leave skin cracked. Scented lotions can trigger nausea during treatment and irritate skin around dressings, so fragrance-free is usually the best bet.

Clothes come off damp, and there is nowhere to put them. A wipe-clean bag keeps the worn things separate, hands over to a visitor in one movement, and saves everything in the bag smelling of the ward.

Everything lives in this bag for the duration and gets moved every time a bed does. Soft sides squash into a locker, a shoulder strap frees a hand for a drip stand, and something you actually like the look of makes the whole business feel less like an emergency.

Antibiotics, treatments and hospital food can all upset your stomach, and repeated diarrhoea can leave the skin around your bottom painfully sore very quickly. A simple barrier cream protects the area and makes washing less uncomfortable. Tell the nursing team if the skin is broken, bleeding or becoming more painful.