How to use Guide five: Eye injuries
Instruction
Read on to learn how to use Guide five to help you manage people with eye injuries.
Guide five: Eye injuries
Many different types of injuries can damage the eye.
Guide five is a step-by-step guide to help you provide first aid for eye injuries caused by:
- Chemicals
- Burns (fire or hot liquid)
- Foreign bodies in the eye
- Knock or cuts to the eye or surrounding area.
Guide five is selected when the person did not pass the eye health screen due to signs of an eye injury.
A hazy cornea caused by a chemical eye injury
A burn injury
A small foreign body on the coloured part of the eye
Injury caused by knock to the eye
Instruction
Look at Guide five: Eye injuries.
Step 1
Instruction
Check what caused the person’s eye injury. Select the appropriate result for the person and follow the instructions.
Result one
Chemicals:
Wash out eye
Give pain medication
Refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Question
When beginning a primary eye care screen with a person who has a chemical eye injury, what should you do?
Select one.
a is correct!
When a person has a chemical eye injury it is very important to stop the screen and wash out the eye before continuing the screen.
Result two
Fire or hot liquid:
Give topical antibiotic
Cover eye
Refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Result three
Foreign body in the eye continue to the next step.
Result four
Knock or cut skip to step 3.
Step 2
Instruction
Turn the eyelid out and look for the foreign body in the eye. Select the appropriate result for the person and follow the instructions.
Result one
If you can see the foreign body on the surface of the eye, on the eyelid, or under the eyelid:
Remove with a cotton bud
Give antibiotic drops.
If you are unable to remove the foreign body:
Cover eye
Refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Result two
If you cannot see the foreign body OR it pierces the eye OR it is on the coloured part of the eye:
Cover eye with an eye shield
Refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Warning
You should only try to remove foreign bodies that:
- Are on the surface of the eye
- Do not pierce the eye
- Are NOT on the coloured part of the eye.
In all other cases, cover the eye and refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Question
Look at the following images and answer the questions.
Photo credit: Arclight Project, University of St Andrews
Note the top eyelid in this image has been flipped.
1. Should you try to remove the foreign body?
Select one.
Yes is correct!
You should try to remove the foreign body because:
- It is on the surface of the eye
- It does not pierce the eye
- It is not on the coloured part of the eye.
Photo credit: Aravind Eye Care System
2. Should you try to remove the foreign body?
Select one.
No is correct!
You should not try to remove the foreign body because it is on the coloured part of the eye.
Cover the eye with an eye shield and refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Instruction
Steps 3 and 4 are only for people with a knock or cut to the eye.
Step 3
Instruction
Check the distance vision result on the PEC Screen form. Select the appropriate result for the person and follow the instructions.
Result one
If the person achieved Yes to all, both eyes (Pass) continue to the next step.
Result two
If No to either eye (Did not pass) and/or the eyeball or skin is damaged:
Give pain medication
Cover eye
Refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Step 4
Instruction
Test the person’s pupil reactions and eye movements. Select the appropriate result for the person and follow the instructions.
Result one
Pass both pupil reactions and eye movement tests:
Give pain medication
Reassure and provide eye health education
If no change or worse in 10 days refer to an eye health professional.
Result two
Did not pass one or both tests:
Give pain medication
Refer to an eye health professional urgently.
Instruction
You will learn how to test pupil reactions and eye movements later in this lesson.
Question
Meet Wei
Wei is 22 years old. She enjoys playing basketball with friends. Wei was injured in a basketball game when the ball hit the side of her face, very close to her right eye.
During her primary eye care screen, the health worker found that Wei:
- Has bruising around her right eye, but the eyeball and skin are not damaged
- Passed the distance vision screen.
Using Guide five: Eye injuries, what should the health worker do next?
Select one.
PENDING SCREENSHOT
c is correct!
The health worker should test Wei’s pupil reactions and eye movement. This is because:
- Wei’s injury was caused by a knock to her eye (step 1)
- She passed the distance vision screen, and her eyeball and skin are not damaged (step 3).
Instruction
In the following topics you will learn how to carry out the remaining tests and actions listed in Guide five: Eye injuries:
- How to wash out an eye
- How to turn an eyelid outward
- How to make and apply an eye cover
- How to remove a foreign body
- How to test pupil reactions and eye movements.