Corneal foreign body workshop held for local optometrists at Burnley General Hospital

A corneal foreign body removal workshop was held at Burnley General Hospital in response to requests from local practitioners, which 23 optometrists and two contact lens opticians attended.

Sponsored by Scope Ophthalmics, consultant ophthalmologist and corneal specialist Mr Hasan Usmani gave a presentation.

Deborah Armstrong, specialist optometrist at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “There were demonstrations of corneal foreign bodies being removed from animal eyes using needles and Alger brushes by consultant ophthalmologists.

"This was followed by supervised practise time for everyone to try out the skill. It is hoped that local publicity will lead to more patients being aware that they can visit their optometrist rather than A&E if they find themselves with a corneal foreign body that needs removal.

"Feedback was 100% positive for the event and the consultants were impressed by how quickly everyone learned the new task.”