Competency and Level of Confidence of Emergency Residents When Dealing with Ocular Emergency Cases in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Patients with ocular emergencies often visit emergency doctors before they visit an ophthalmologist. Therefore, emergency physicians must have adequate knowledge for preliminary diagnosis. We aimed to assess emergency resident doctors’ training in managing eye emergencies, as well as their level of confidence, competence, and equipment use skills in dealing with ocular emergencies. This cross-sectional, multicenter, questionnaire-based study included all emergency resident doctors in the Western, Central, and Eastern regions of Saudi Arabia. In total, 181 emergency residents were enrolled. Moreover, 28.2% received adequate training in the management of eye emergencies, and 72.2% reported that they received training from senior emergency medical staff. Overall, 14.9% of residents expressed confidence in handling emergency eye cases, compared with 66.3% who expressed less confidence. The prevalence of residents demonstrating confidence in the management of emergency eye cases was significantly high among those who received instructions on how to use an ophthalmoscope (p < 0.001), those who had been taught to use the slit lamp (p < 0.001), and those who expressed confidence in using the slit lamp (p < 0.001). We advise integrating basic ophthalmic clinical skills into emergency resident training programs to help gain greater insight, reduce the workload of ophthalmic services, and provide proper emergency eye care.