A simple eye hygiene regimen can go a long way towards alleviating eye discomfort and improving the quality of daily life of patients, whether they are at home or in a hospice facility
Eye care for patients is a part of the daily grooming and nursing care routine in a hospice care setup. When a patient is resting or sleeping most of the time, the eyes tend to accumulate secretions and discharge which can cause irritation, discomfort, andprevent the eyes from opening.
A simple eye cleaning process, which is sometimes done multiple times in a day, can make the patient feel better, cleaner, and more comfortable.
The resources needed for an eye care exercise are: sterile cotton balls, sterile water or saline solution, eye drops as prescribed by the physician, and/or lubricating eye drops to counter eye dryness.
A sterile cotton ball is dipped in clean water or saline solution, to clean the eye from the inner corner towards outside. A fresh cotton ball should be used for each stroke and eye. Eye drops are administered in each eye if prescribed. Lubricating eye dropsare especially useful in keeping the eye moist.
Hands should be washed thoroughly before and after the procedure. If using surgical gloves, dispose of the used gloves, and cotton balls according to biomedical waste disposal practices.
Watch this simple eye cleaning procedure here: Click to view