Earlier this afternoon, I purchased a Welch Allyn 3.5v MacroView Diagnostic Set (97201-MC) consisting of an otoscope and ophthalmoscope. Because of the steep price, I settled for something mid-tier which will hopefully last for years to come. Also, as a student, it’s better to learn from something which doesn’t automatically diagnose a patient like some of the new medical gadgets tend to do. 😀Last Saturday, I took part in a training session where roughly fifteen of my classmates learned how to perform a direct fundoscopy on each other. This Wednesday, that training will be put to the test as I attempt to “teach” this to my PPS group.
It really isn’t that hard. Crudely put, you turn on the otoscope, look for the “red reflex”, follow the reflex in an inch or two away from the patient’s eye using your other hand to guide how close you are to their face as well as holding their eyelid open, focus the scope, follow the vessels medially toward the optic disc/cup, and you’re done. It’s one of those skills which takes practice, so I’m looking forward to getting more experience in clinics. 🙂
