Patient care

Did you know that half of all eye injuries happen at home? While you may be “safer at home” during the coronavirus pandemic, you should take extra precaution when using chemical cleaning products or when doing yard work or home improvement projects, the activities most responsible for home eye injuries. By simply wearing protective eyewear, you can reduce the risk of eye injury by 90%. Learn more about preventing eye injuries at home at https://bit.ly/3aAf7Zl , and be sure to share with friends who are active at home.

Our employees have worked diligently throughout the crisis, even as seeing patients during these uncertain times has posed a certain amount of risk to themselves and their families. And while we’re certain that in some cases they might have been better off financially by taking unemployment, we’re proud that we have not furloughed or had to lay-off any employees throughout the crisis, and we’ve even given a Covid bonus to all High Country Macula staff to try to ease their financial burden, and to reward them for their extraordinary dedication.

Experiencing redness in your eyes? Although pink eye, or conjunctivitis, may be a rare symptom of coronavirus, it is also Spring allergy season, when many people are suffering from allergic conjunctivitis due to a reaction to pollen. While red eyes and eyelids are a symptom of Covid- 19, only 1-3% of coronavirus patients get viral conjunctivitis. The key difference between the viral and allergic forms of conjunctivitis is that viral conjunctivitis is rarely accompanied by the itching common in the allergic strain. Learn more about how to get relief from eye allergies at https://bit.ly/3cOSh1p, and share with anyone you know who experiences Spring allergies.

Does the appearance of new floaters qualify as an emergency during the coronavirus pandemic? Yes.
While most floaters are harmless and not a threat to your vision, new floaters may be a sign of a serious problem such as a Retinal Tear or a Retinal Detachment. If you experience floaters that are darker than normal, there are significantly more of them, or if you see flashing lights and notice a loss of peripheral vision, these symptoms may be signs of a more serious problems requiring evaluation. If this is the case, contact your Retinologist at High Country Macula immediately. We can discuss your symptoms to determine if an emergency exam is necessary. We remain committed to performing the essential care to help you preserve your sight.

As we all are aware, McKinley and San Juan Counties have been severely and disproportionately affected by the Covid crisis. At HCM, we travel to Gallup on almost a weekly basis, where we see patients from Western New Mexico and Eastern Arizona. Needless to say, continued trips to Gallup have been met with some trepidation, especially as President Nez of Navajo Nation has ordered Weekend curfews and Governor Lujan-Grisham more recently ordered a state of emergency and a 72 hour lockdown in Gallup. Yet as a group, ultimately we’ve come to the conclusion that people in Gallup require eye care as much as people in Central and Northern New Mexico, and we have continued to staff our clinic there on a regular basis. After all, Drs. Hudson, Golubev, and I are trained as Medical Doctors, and we have taken an oath to provide care to people as physicians at all times – not only to provide care when conditions are safe and delivery is easy.

While we aren’t ER or ICU workers, our offices have stayed open throughout the Covid crisis as so many of our patients have ocular conditions that fall under the category of “necessary.” Per our Governor, this means that if neglected for 90 days it could lead to permanent harm or dysfunction. Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD), Diabetic Retinopathy, Retinal Tearing and Detachment, and Retinal Vascular Occlusions all fall under this definition and require that we continue to keep our offices open. At High Country Macula, we remain committed to performing the essential care you need to help you preserve your sight.

Although we have implemented new protocols for seeing patients at High Country Macula, it is important that everyone maintains their vision health during these challenging times. For patients who have postponed non-urgent visits, please continue home-monitoring and making healthy lifestyle choices. Those with diagnosed conditions can track changes in your vision using our Amsler Grid, available at https://bit.ly/3bu0N5A. It’s advised to monitor at least once a month. As always, communication with our patients is our focus. Please don’t hesitate to call us at High Country Macula and to make us aware of any significant changes in your vision.

You’ve probably heard that one thing to do to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 is to wash or sanitize your hands regularly. The reason hand washing is effective is that the virus is very fragile; the only thing that protects it is a thin outer layer of fat. That is why any soap or detergent is the best remedy, because the soap lather cuts the fat. That is also why you have to rub so much – for 20 seconds or more – to make a lot of lather. By dissolving the fat layer, the protein molecule disperses and breaks down on its own. It is also important to use water over 77 degrees because heat melts fat, and hot water produces more lather, which makes it even more useful. Alcohol or any mixture with alcohol over 65% dissolves any fat, especially the external lipid layer of the virus. For more recommendations on what you can do to help prevent the spread of flu-like illnesses, visit our website at https://bit.ly/3bCYkWq