After my hysterectomy this February, I had to go to the ER twice after complications arose. One time, I had been lying there forever and eventually had to pee. However, they'd given me a narcotic so for insurance purposes, I wasn't allowed to walk to the bathroom, even with an escort. So instead, the nurse brought me a bedside commode and I had to try to squat down while wearing a way too small abdominal binder, being high, in a ton of pain and not able to be very mobile. My boyfriend had to line me up with everything and hold it between my legs so I could pee. Seriously, it would have been easier to walk to the bathroom. It was certainly a very graceless ballet to get the job done.
The next time I went to the ER, I was there because my abdominal incision opened up and it was too risky for me to walk around and have my organs fall out (I'm joking, I think) or because it might open up further so when I had to pee, I asked for a catheter and it was sweet relief.
A catheter, IMHO, is so much better than an awkward dance with a loving but clueless partner or being observed by a professional while you're either pee shy or have an uncooperative bladder.
That said, I have no trouble leaving the door open and being watched by friends or lovers at home when I pee. Maybe it's the home court advantage. I'm very particular about my toilets and toilet tissue.