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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

WTAF?? They GLUED MY EYE SHUT!

120 replies

BeatieBourke · 26/11/2022 15:27

Just recovering from the sheer madness of this.

I had to reattend a minor injuries clinic this morning because the butterfly stitches holding together a deep cut to my forehead had failed and the cut had reopened.

The nurse decided it needed glueing. She put a gauze over my eye (the cut is above my left eye) and we had a chuckle about how terrible it would be if she accidentally glued my eye closed.

When she'd done, she removed the gauze and I couldn't open my eye! The glue had run down into the corner of my eye and then along the lash line, sticking my eyelids together. GLUED SHUT!!!

I had to lay there for over an hour while they soaked my eye with saline and prised apart my eyelids. Then then tried to pull all the hardened glue out of my eyelashes with a pair of tweezers. In the end I had to do this myself with my fingers while they watched. I now have very few eyelashes on my left eye.

I felt pretty awful for the nurse. She was absolutely horrified at what had happened. She was obviously panicking. I found myself reassuring her it would all be fine while she stared at my face saying "Oh god! What have I done!" repeatedly.

We got it all off and my eye is now fine. I'm not going to make a complaint. It was an awful accident. But I'm quite scared of hospitals after a nightmare a few years ago left me with PTSD. I had to go for an x ray last week and the Dr was obviously harassed and stressed. He wouldn't listen to what I was trying to tell him and I ended up having a massive panicking attack. And now this.

AIBU to feel like stepping foot in a hospital is a game of roulette with a good chance of you coming out worse off than when you went in?

I'm still completely dumbfounded.

OP posts:
DarkKarmaIlama · 27/11/2022 17:47

She should have absolutely known better. Anyone with an ounce of common sense would know to lie you down for this procedure. It doesn’t take a nursing registration to know that. Worrying practice!

rangagirl · 27/11/2022 17:51

I get that you don't want to get her in massive trouble, and that's fair enough. Your choice.

However... sounds like she DOES need to learn from this, so she won't repeat that mistake. She might seriously damage someone's eye next time!

Maybe you can go back to the hospital and speak to her, and check in with how she's doing... try to suss out if she's taken any steps towards self improvement by herself.

If she just blithers on with this 'I'm so awful' stuff without actually trying to take anything meaningful away from the situation, then she NEEDS to be reported. Not necessarily fired, but reported so she can LEARN the lesson she needs to learn.

ChocolatemilkBertie · 27/11/2022 18:14

You seem like a lovely person OP (that’s not sarcastic). Despite all your feelings with hospitals, you still recognised easily done human error when it occurs and someone’s sincerity when realising their mistake. So many people would have had that nurse done in for that.

Missingpop · 27/11/2022 18:17

Sorry but I’m absolutely fucking pissing myself laughing I really thought your post was going to be about getting eyelash extensions & they glued your eyes together, but in A&E is hilarious taken comfort in the fact you were in the right place.🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Efrogwraig · 27/11/2022 18:18

I wouldn't make a complaint. l would write to the hospital to tell them what happened, absolutely no blame, & ask if there are lessons to be learned, better training/practice to be implemented so that it doesn't happen again. That way there will be a positive outcome.

And well done for not panicking when a real emergency happened. You're great x

YDBear · 27/11/2022 18:27

Hang on, you’re dealing with the NHS and you thought they would actually get it right? And after your previous experience of the NHS’s SNAFU health care. Blimey! You’ll be investing in crypto next, or expecting a large remittance from Nigeria.

OhWilding · 27/11/2022 18:34

OP - have you told anyone that you can't feel any sensation?

Sorry about the eye glueing - it's tough to get right sometimes as it is runny stuff and some lacerations can be quite awkward around the eye.

Hope you hit the jackpot on your next visit to an NHS establishment though - perhaps buy a lotto ticket on that day?

HangerLaneGyratorySystem · 27/11/2022 18:43

I think what this country needs is more people who find NHS accidents absolutely hilarious. What a grin!

penni00 · 27/11/2022 18:46

I expected the post to be cosmetic eyelash treatment. I think it is great that you are not immed jumpimg to complain, and amazing how much empathy you have for the nurse. However, I do have concerns regarding the mental health side of this experience, and how you will react to future medical attention. Also, I think you should note exactly what happened to the best of your ability whilst it is still fresh in your memory. This is just in case you do have any future issues from this medical accident. I mean, I don't want to concern you, but how would you feel should your eyelashes not grow back, for example?

AloysiaW · 27/11/2022 18:49

Hahahaha so funny! Hmm
Not even the simplest things.

Redty10 · 27/11/2022 18:56

FamKeNekson · 26/11/2022 15:30

Could you not feel it running down? I think I'd have asked for more than just a piece of gauze to protect my eye of all things but hindsight is a wonderful. And to be honest I probably would sue in your situation but then I really am very precious about my eyes.

What good would you hope suing would do? It sounds like a genuine mistake to me and the nurse was obviously mortified. No serious harm done.
The NHS spends hundreds of thousands of pounds every year by being sued, sometimes serious harm had occurred so suing was justified, but in many cases it had not and that money would be much better used on patient care or better training n the use of surgical glue!
i do hate the suing culture that is developing in this country.

OhWilding · 27/11/2022 19:00

@FamKeNekson you cannot sue for some missing eyelashes... Eyelashes grow pack. Nothing negligent has happened.

RoyalCorgi · 27/11/2022 19:11

Redty10 · 27/11/2022 18:56

What good would you hope suing would do? It sounds like a genuine mistake to me and the nurse was obviously mortified. No serious harm done.
The NHS spends hundreds of thousands of pounds every year by being sued, sometimes serious harm had occurred so suing was justified, but in many cases it had not and that money would be much better used on patient care or better training n the use of surgical glue!
i do hate the suing culture that is developing in this country.

Actually the bar for proving medical negligence is very high indeed. You really have to have been seriously injured and you have to show that the clinician behaved in a way that no reasonable clinician would have done. Even then you probably won't get a huge amount.

Half the NHS's litigation bill goes on maternity cases, and the reason for that is that babies with brain injuries caused by oxygen starvation at birth need lifetime care costing millions of pounds.

WednesdaysChild11 · 27/11/2022 19:14

God how awful. I love how you've taken it in good will.

I literally don't know what the dentist did to my mouth but a week after she removed my tooth it spontaneously started gushing (and I mean gushing) with blood from about 10pm - 3am in the morning. It just wasn't slowing down, I looked like a vampire. Kept choking, spitting out blood. It was nearly a trip to a and e but cos I was so tired I kept putting it off and putting it off. Then eventually I went sleep about 3.30am biting down on a bunch of gauze. Still don't know what caused it I didn't knock it or catch it with any food that I know of.

QueenAnnesHat · 27/11/2022 19:15

Something similar happened to my mum. She had a fall at her care home and cut her temple, just above her eye. Ambulance called and they took her to A&E, where (after about 6 hours - and this was pre Covid) a doctor glued her cut together. Unfortunately he also glued the fingertip of his blue glove to the cut! ‘Don’t worry’ he said, ‘I’ll just cut the glove’. Poor mum was wandering around for a week or more with a piece of blue plastic glove stuck to her forehead. She had dementia, so wasn’t really aware, but I was livid. I appreciate that accidents happen, but we’d waited six hours for the ‘expert glue doctor’ to be free to see to her - some expert - and he wasn’t at all bothered that he’d left her looking completely ridiculous - no consideration for her dignity.

HootyMcboob76 · 27/11/2022 19:15

When my daughter was in a car accident a few years ago she was in A&E and was having a head laceration cleaned and closed by a CONSULTANT. She used glue to close the wound and also glued her bright blue latex glove to my daughters head.
We had to cut around it to get it off and she had a circle of blue latex stuck to her scalp for a few weeks until it fell off.

Silly things happen even when high up doctors are involved!

Redty10 · 27/11/2022 19:20

Agree that many cases are maternity and absolutely justified, but there are also many “no win no fee” cases that are settled out of court on the advice of the indemnity insurers as it is cheaper for them than slogging it out in court!

Wishiwasatailor · 27/11/2022 19:28

Lol in 10 years of a&e/MIU I’ve seen a doctor glue a wound once

StopTalkingAndListen · 27/11/2022 19:34

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn at the user's request.

BrimFullOfAsher · 27/11/2022 19:42

Was the gauze over your eye wet? If not, there is the error. The glue should have set once it came into contact with the wet gauze if it was.

baban1989 · 27/11/2022 19:42

I work in health care and I am trained to glue wounds. I remember when I was doing my training and the trainer said cover the eye with gauze, but its not the end of the world if you glue their eye shut (as an accident of course) it will come off in a couple of days! I couldn't imagine my eye being glued shut for that long. He said he has done it, he had also managed to glue a bit of a glove to someone too... He didn't stress it, the glue comes off like a scab a few days later.

AloysiaW · 27/11/2022 19:46

baban1989 · 27/11/2022 19:42

I work in health care and I am trained to glue wounds. I remember when I was doing my training and the trainer said cover the eye with gauze, but its not the end of the world if you glue their eye shut (as an accident of course) it will come off in a couple of days! I couldn't imagine my eye being glued shut for that long. He said he has done it, he had also managed to glue a bit of a glove to someone too... He didn't stress it, the glue comes off like a scab a few days later.

Lovely.

Minimalme · 27/11/2022 19:48

baban1989 · 27/11/2022 19:42

I work in health care and I am trained to glue wounds. I remember when I was doing my training and the trainer said cover the eye with gauze, but its not the end of the world if you glue their eye shut (as an accident of course) it will come off in a couple of days! I couldn't imagine my eye being glued shut for that long. He said he has done it, he had also managed to glue a bit of a glove to someone too... He didn't stress it, the glue comes off like a scab a few days later.

The imagine of someone walking around for a couple of days with a bit of hospital glove glued to their face has really made me laugh. Beautiful!

Buffs · 27/11/2022 19:49

Get some eyelash growth serum, it’s actually amazing.

Minimalme · 27/11/2022 19:50

Well done for staying so calm op. You are honestly a trouper.