With the increasing prevalence of colon cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, and acute inflammatory processes of the intestines, a growing number of people receive colostomies or ileostomy formation procedures. Due to the changing healthcare system, the length of stay for a patient with a new ostomy is getting shorter and shorter. This leaves the patient to assume all responsibility for caring for the ostomy and to handle the psychological changes that follow an alteration to their body. Most people are not able to cope with the new ostomy and are not ready to acquire the skills that are needed for proper care of the stoma. This presentation will highlight the psychosocial and physical concerns that these individuals encounter during the three to six monthsfollowing their ostomy procedure.
