Should you go to a hospital emergency room if you're having problems with your eyes? In many cases, your eye doctor can provide the help you need. This is especially important to reduce impacts on busy ERs and to minimize your exposure to other diseases in waiting rooms.

What Qualifies as Emergency Eye Care?

The following situations could qualify for emergency eye care:

• Getting hit in the eye
• Chemical burn
• Sudden onset of blurry or loss of vision
• Eye scratches
• Flashes of light or floaters
• Abrupt headaches with or without visual impacts

If you have lost or broken eyewear or are low on contact lenses and don't have a backup pair of glasses, your eye doctor can help with that too.

What Is Considered Routine Eye Care?

Experiencing itchy or dry eyes is important to address, but would not be considered urgent or an emergency. The same goes for your annual eye exam or wanting to chat with your eye doctor about trying contact lenses for the first time. These inquiries are important, of course, but can wait until your next appointment.

If you have an eye care emergency or essential need, consider calling St. Clairsville Eyecare to see if we can help. We're here to provide the care you need — for both emergencies and routine care. Call (740) 695-0444.