Every day, employees sustain workplace related eye injuries that require the attention of an eye care professional or doctor. Safety experts and doctors believe the two most common reasons that employees sustain eye injuries is either because they fail to use anything to shield their eyes or they are using the wrong type of eye protection.
Common Types of Eye Injuries Most frequently, eye injuries that take place in the work environment are a result of airborne particles or falling objects such as building or craft materials that can enter or cause abrasions on the eye. Chemicals, fumes and radiation can also scorch and seriously damage the sensitive eye tissues.
Protection for your Eyes
Your eye doctor is trained to assist you to determine potential eye dangers at your workplace and decide on the optimal sort of eye safety for you.
Sometimes working conditions have multiple risks for eyes and finding the right eye protection needs to take all potential dangers into account.
If you work with chemicals you should wear goggles, while if you work in a place where there are flying objects or particles, pick safety glasses that have shields along the sides too.
Working near dangerous radiation when welding, working with lasers, or fiber optics calls for the use of special-purpose safety glasses, protective goggles with a face shield, or helmets designed just for this sort of work.
Eye Safety with Screens
Those who spend a large portion of their day working at the computer or using hand held devices are also at increased risk of discomfort such as blurred vision, headaches and eye strain.
Here are some tips to avoid putting your eyes under unnecessary pressure when using hand held devices or working on a computer:
Utilize the 20-20-20 rule which will allow your eyes periodic rest. At every 20 minute interval take a 20 second break to watch something about 20 feet in the distance. If you’re using a hand-held device, increase the font size so you can use it at a distance more comfortable for your eyes.
Also try to maintain the light intensity of your monitor to a comfortable resolution and place your monitor right under eye level to be less of a strain on your eyes. You may also want to consider purchasing computer glasses.
If you have any further queries about vision care at your workplace, please give us a call today!