Me, Myself and Eye

More than one million people suffer from some type of eye injury. 90 percent of these injuries could have been prevented with the proper protective eyewear. The month of October is eye injury prevention month. Wright Clinic and Occupational Health want to remind the community of the importance of keeping your eyes on the prize while working, and remembering that everything could change in the blink of an eye.

Accidental eye injury is one of the leading causes of visual impairment in the U.S. (October Is Eye Injury Prevention Month, 2020). Your eyes can be damaged by dust, chemicals, foreign bodies and even the sun. Injuries like cuts, burns or objects stuck in your eye are emergencies and should be medically treated as soon as possible.

While many eye related injuries occur within the workplace, nearly half of all eye injuries take place at home. Home repairs, yard work, cleaning and cooking cause more than 40 percent of all eye injuries (American Academy of Ophthalmology & Turbert, 2019). One-third of those at home injuries happened in the kitchen, bedroom, living room or family room.

The easiest way to prevent an eye injury is to be vigilant about wearing proper protective eyewear when completing tasks that could potentially hurt your eyes. Proper eye protection does not include contacts and eyeglasses. The type of protection needed will depend on the task at hand. Safety glasses should meet the American National Standards Institute criteria and can be worn for most repair projects and activities around the home. For work environments, the same criteria is enough, however, there may be distinct expectations. Talk to your employer about the correct, protective eyewear for different tasks at work. Sport eye protection should meet the specific requirements of that particular sport certified by that sport’s governing body or the American Society forTesting and Materials.

Wright Clinic’s Occupational Health will come to you with programs specific to your company’s needs to keep workers safe and healthy on the job. Occupational Health can assist with the development of health policies, functional job descriptions, health education and many other services.

For more preventive and safety tips for the workplace, check out our Facebook and give us a call at: 307.688.7965

 

References

American Academy of Ophthalmology, & Turbert, D. (2019, March 23). Preventing Eye Injuries (B. Pagan-Duran MD, Ed.). American Academy of Ophthalmology. https://www.aao.org/eye-health/tips-prevention/preventing-injuries

Kelechava, B. (2020, April 20). ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2020: Current Standard for Safety Glasses. The ANSI Blog. https://blog.ansi.org/2020/04/ansi-isea-z87-1-2020-safety-glasses-eye-face/#gref

October is Eye Injury Prevention Month!» Department of Ophthalmology» College of Medicine» University of Florida. (2020, October 20). Department of Opthalmology. https://eye.ufl.edu/2020/10/02/october-is-eye-injury-prevention-month/#:~:text=More%20than%20one%20million%20people

Standards & Publications - Products & Services. (n.d.). Www.astm.org. Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://www.astm.org/products-services/standards-and-publications.html