Procedure to administer eye drops

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Procedure
  1. Consult the patient’s prescription to ascertain the following: drug and dose, date and time of administration, route and method of administration, including which eye is to be treated, and expiry date of the drug.
  1. Check that there are no contraindications, such as allergies, to the medicine.
  1. Wash your hands. If using alcohol hand gel, ensure that your hands are dry before you commence the procedure to prevent irritation of the eye. Follow local policy regarding the use of personal protective equipment, such as gloves.
  1. Ask the patient to sit back or lie down.
  1. Clean the eyelids if necessary to remove discharge or crusting. Moisten sterile cotton wool or a non-linting swab using sterile water or saline, squeezing excess liquid out. Ask the patient to look downwards and swab the upper eyelid from the nasal corner outwards. Repeat if necessary, using a clean swab each time. Do the same with the lower eyelid, but ask the patient to look up before you swab the eyelid. The action of the patient looking up or down helps you to avoid touching the cornea with the swab inadvertently.
  1. Gently shake the eye drop bottle to mix the contents and ensure even distribution of the active drug.
  1. Remove the cap and place it on a clean surface to prevent contamination.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Instillation of eye drops
  1. Ask the patient to look up and carefully pull the skin below the lower lid of the affected eye using a clean tissue to make a pocket (fornix) and expose the conjunctival sac (Figure 2).
  1. Instil the prescribed number of eye drops. If the patient blinks or closes their eyes, repeat the procedure. Or apply a thin stream of ointment, approximately 1mm-1cm in length along the lower eyelid margin on the inner conjunctiva from the nasal corner outwards. Ensure that the tip of the eye drop bottle or ointment tube does not come into contact with the patient’s eye or eyelids to avoid contamination of the medicine.
  1. Release the eyelid.
  1. Ask the patient to close the eye for approximately one minute.
  1. Wipe any excess eye drops or eye ointment from the patient’s cheek, avoiding the eyelid margin so as not to wick away the drug from the eye.
  1. Explain to the patient that they may have blurred vision for a short time following administration of the medicine.
  1. Wash your hands. Clean any equipment used and dispose of swabs and any other disposable equipment as per local policy.
  1. Record the administration of eye drops or eye ointment in the patient’s notes.

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