The first few seconds after exposure to a hazardous, corrosive chemical are crucial. Do not hesitate to use the emergency eye wash station since delaying treatment may result in permanent eye damage.
Once you reach the eye wash station, follow these important steps:
- Push the level. The eyewash unit will activate with one single motion. The dust cover will pop off and the flushing fluid will start to flow from the faucet heads.
- Begin to flush your eyes. Position your eyes directly in the stream of the fluid right away.
- Hold your eyes open using your fingers. Eyewash stations are typically hands-free. Keep your eyes open by holding your eyelids apart with your fingers.
- Roll your eyes. Look left, then right, then up and down to ensure that the fluid flushes all areas of your eyes.
- Continue flushing for 15 minutes. The temperature of the fluid is often 60 and 100 degrees Fahrenheit, which is a comfortable temperature to continue flushing.
- Remove your contacts. If you have contact lenses in your eyes, you can remove them while you are flushing. Do not delay flushing in order to take out your lenses, but ensure that you remove them since they can trap the chemical in your eyes.
- Seek immediate medical attention. Once the flushing is finished, see a doctor to see if anything more needs to be done to preserve your vision.
If you suffered an injury at work and need help filing for workers’ comp benefits, contact Wax & Wax, A Law Corporation and schedule a free consultation with our workers’ compensation lawyers today.
