when educating a patient in emergency eye care what symptoms should they report

Symptoms of an eye injury We recommend seeking immediate medical attention anytime you experience swelling, redness, or pain in your eye, especially if it occurs after an injury or having a foreign object or chemical in your eye. When left untreated, these injuries can damage your eye even more, leading to partial and/or permanent blindness.

Full Answer

Can I go to the emergency room for an eye injury?

A lot of eyecare offices will have an after hours emergency number listed on their answering machine message that will connect you directly to an eyecare professional. If this is not the case, and you are unable to reach someone, unfortunately going to the emergency room or urgent care might be your best option for prompt treatment.

Is it better to go to the ER or eye care?

In most cases, if your pain or injury involves your eye (s) it is always better to see an eye care professional instead of making a trip to the ER. This is true for several reasons. Here’s a few: Not all emergency room or urgent care facilities have the equipment needed to properly examine the eyes.

What should I do if I have a trauma to my eye?

Your first course of action in the event of trauma to the eye or any prolonged discomfort should always be making a call to your optometrist’s office. They will be able to let you know if your symptoms require immediate attention and if there are any special instructions you need to follow such as flushing the eye or removing contact lenses.

Is pinkeye a medical emergency?

Pinkeye isn’t a medical emergency. Neither is a puffy eyelid. But a new study finds that nearly 1 in 4 people who seek emergency care for eye problems have those mild conditions. The work recommends ways to help those patients get the right level of care.

What symptoms might a patient reports that could indicate a problem with the eyes?

Dark spot in the center of your field of vision. Difficulty focusing on near or distant objects. Double vision. Dry eyes with itching or burning.

What eye problems are an emergency?

Seek emergency medical care if:There appears to be a scratch, cut, or something has gone into (penetrated) the eyeball.Any chemical gets into the eye.The eye is painful and red.Nausea or headache occur with the eye pain (this may be a symptom of glaucoma or stroke).More items...

What is the first thing you should do in the event of dealing with an eye injury?

First Aid Treatment for Eye InjuriesDO NOT rub the eye.Blink several times and allow tears to flush out the particle.Lift the upper eyelid over the lashes of your lower lid to let the eyelashes try to brush the particle out.Use eyewash, saline solution or running tap water to flush the eye out.More items...•

What are the 4 steps you should follow when giving first aid for an eye injury?

First aid for eye injuriestouch the eye or any contact lens.allow patient to rub eye.try to remove any object which is penetrating the eye.apply pressure when bandaging the eye.

When is eye pressure an emergency?

This is considered a medical emergency because the intraocular pressure spikes suddenly to anywhere from 30-70 mm or higher. This causes extremely sharp pain, nausea and vomiting, and cloudy vision. The IOP needs to be lowered within hours to prevent permanent vision loss.

When is eye pain an emergency?

Call 911 or your local emergency number for eye pain if: It is unusually severe or accompanied by headache, fever or unusual sensitivity to light. Your vision changes suddenly. You also experience nausea or vomiting.

What are the priorities of care for the person with an eye injury?

With most eye injuries the priority is initial stabilisation of the patient, protection of the eye and transport to an appropriate facility (preferably one with an ophthalmologist).

How do you assess an eye injury?

Step 1: Visual examinationInspection. Record the location, size and appearance of obvious injuries such as lacerations, swelling (contusions) or foreign bodies (FB). ... Visual acuity. ... Orbital wall. ... Ocular motility. ... Visual fields. ... Adnexae. ... Eyeball.

What is the first step you should take if you get an exposure in your eyes?

If a chemical splashes into your eye, take these steps immediately.Flush your eye with water. Use clean, lukewarm tap water for at least 20 minutes. ... Wash your hands with soap and water. Thoroughly rinse your hands to be sure no chemical or soap is left on them.Remove contact lenses.

What is the first nursing intervention step for the immediate care of a patient with a penetrating wound of the eye?

Remain calm and keep your eyes open until they can be flushed. Closing your eyes traps the chemical in and does further damage. Flush eyes generously with water for 15 to 20 minutes. Make sure you keep your eyes open during flushing.

What action should you take if you work colleague suffers a direct impact to the eye?

Advise the casualty not to rub their eye as this could make it worse. Ask them to sit down facing a light. Stand behind them and gently open their eyelids with your thumbs. Ask them to look right, left, up and down as you look closely at the eye.

Which is the first step you should take when preparing to give care to a person with burns?

First aid for a minor burnCool down the burn. ... Remove tight items, such as rings, from the burned area. ... Avoid breaking blisters. ... Apply a moisturizing lotion, such as one with aloe vera. ... Loosely bandage the burn. ... Take an over-the-counter pain reliever if necessary.

Protect your eyes

Not getting appropriate treatment for eye emergencies can have serious consequences like vision loss. Give us a call or visit our Mt Vernon clinic to set up an appointment with our optometrist.

Recent Posts

When patients discover they need glaucoma treatment, it often comes with a variety of questions and concerns. Because glaucoma is a disease that damages the optic nerve of the eye and can cause vision loss, a diagnosis can often feel overwhelming.

What does it mean when your eyes blur?

Sudden blurred vision in one or both eyes can sometimes indicate an underlying and potentially serious health problem such as stroke or diabetes. Sudden onset of flashes, floaters, loss of side vision or total loss of vision that has not been present before can indicate acute retinal disease and may require immediate attention.

Is it normal to have a headache and not an emergency?

Frequent headaches are usually not an emergency , but can be an early warning sign of a vision problem. When experiencing frequent headaches, one should contact a general medical doctor and might want to schedule schedule an eye examination.

Is it normal for your eyes to blur?

Gradual blurring is typically not an emergency. If you notice that your vision becomes blurry gradually, or over a period of time, then it is probably time to schedule an eye examination. This can indicate common conditions such as cataracts, presbyopia, the need for glasses, or a change in your current glasses.

Do you see eye doctors every day?

Typically, a periodic comprehensive eye examination as recommended by an eye doctor will ensure that eyes stay healthy and vision remains clear.

Key points

You must decide on the best course of action for patients who present as an emergency. This will depend on the situation and you must use your professional judgement to decide what is in the best interests of the patient.

Action to take

You must assess the patient and decide on the best course of action. The specific action will depend on the situation and you must use your professional judgement to decide what is in the best interests of the patient.

Practice staff

You, or your employer, should make sure that practice staff understand the protocol to follow when a patient presents as an emergency.

Useful information and links

The College of Optometrists Emergency Triage protocol. [Accessed 18 Nov 2020]

What does it mean when your eye hurts?

Pain In or Around Your Eyes. Some people describe eye pain as dull, sharp, gritty, burning, aching, or stabbing. Eye pain is often categorized as either ocular pain (on the surface of the eye) and orbital pain (behind or in the eye).

What does it mean when your eyes are changing?

These vision symptoms could signal an eye disease, an eye injury or a condition that may be affecting the entire body.

Does Verywell Health use peer reviewed sources?

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

What to do if you have trauma to your eye?

Your first course of action in the event of trauma to the eye or any prolonged discomfort should always be making a call to your optometrist’s office. They will be able to let you know if your symptoms require immediate attention and if there are any special instructions you need to follow such as flushing the eye or removing contact lenses.

What are the symptoms of eye pain?

Here are a few common symptoms that warrant a call or visit to your optometrist: Eye pain. Redness. Irritation from contact lens wear. Discharge. Eye injuries. Foreign objects in the eye.

What is the phone number for Bespoke Vision?

If you are a BeSpoke Vision patient and have an eye emergency during office hours, please call us at 405-341-2062.

Can misdiagnosis cost you your sight?

A misdiagnosis could cost you your sight. A good majority of the time, you will be referred to an eye doctor anyways, so seeing an eye care professional first will save you time and money.

How to reduce inappropriate emergency care for routine eye issues?

Other ways to reduce inappropriate emergency care for routine eye issues might include incentives to primary care providers and eye specialists, to encourage more availability of after-hours appointments.

How many people seek emergency eye care?

But a new study finds that nearly 1 in 4 people who seek emergency care for eye problems have those mild conditions. The work recommends ways to help those patients get the right level of care.

What are the three most common non-emergency conditions?

Researchers found younger people, men, those with lower incomes or dementia, and people of color were more likely to seek emergency care for the three most common nonemergency conditions: conjunctivitis (pinkeye), blepharitis (swollen eyelids) and chalazion (eyelid bumps).

Does insurance cover eye exams?

Adding insurance coverage for regular eye exams for those who wear contacts or eyeglasses, so that they develop a connection to a regular eye provider they can consult when symptoms develop, might also cut down on inappropriate ER use.