Emergency Eye Care at Prairie Eye Care (Clinic Hours Only)
Prairie Eye Care offers emergency eye care during regular clinic hours at all four of our locations. If you’re unsure what an emergency is, start by calling us. Our experienced eye doctors in Winnipeg will walk you through the next steps and help you get the care you need, quickly and safely.
Where to Get Immediate Eye Care
Prairie Eye Care provides emergency eye care during regular business hours, including same-day or next-day appointments when possible. While we are not a 24/7 walk-in clinic, we strive to accommodate urgent needs as quickly as possible.
If your emergency occurs outside clinic hours, go directly to your nearest emergency department, such as the Misericordia Eye Care Centre, for evaluation.
When to Seek Emergency Eye Care
Don’t wait to see if it clears up. If you’re experiencing sudden or severe symptoms, your vision could be at risk, and early intervention can prevent long-term damage.
Call us immediately if you notice:
- Sudden vision loss or a sudden increase in floaters
- Flashes of light or a shadow across your field of vision
- Severe eye pain or redness with swelling
- Trauma to the eye or eyelid
- Chemical exposure
- A foreign object lodged in the eye
- Sudden double vision or blurriness
-
Painful or swollen bump on the eyelid (possible stye or chalazion)
These symptoms often require urgent in-clinic evaluation. Even if you’re not sure, it’s best to call.
What Counts as an Eye Emergency?
An eye emergency involves sudden, painful, or serious symptoms that can affect your vision or eye health if left untreated. Our optometrists regularly see and manage conditions like:
- Eye trauma from accidents or sports
- Scratched or foreign objects in the eye
- Chemical burns or splash injuries
- Infections with severe discharge, swelling, or pain
- Acute inflammation or flare-ups of chronic eye conditions
Quick action is critical, even waiting a few hours can make a difference in your outcome. That’s why we approach family eye care with urgency when it’s needed, and support when it’s most helpful.
Painful Stye? We Can Help!
Styes (also called hordeolum) are red, painful bumps that appear along the edge of the eyelid, often due to a blocked oil gland or bacterial infection. While many styes resolve on their own, others can become larger, more painful, or recur frequently.
We treat styes with non-surgical, in-office treatments designed to reduce inflammation, clear blockages, and relieve discomfort.
If you’re noticing a painful bump on your eyelid, or if styes are happening more frequently, don’t wait—call our team for an evaluation.
What to Do in an Eye Emergency
Here’s what you should do before you arrive:
- Do not rub, press, or try to remove objects from the eye.
- If you’ve had chemical exposure, flush your eyes immediately with clean water.
- If there’s trauma or bleeding, gently shield the eye with a clean cover.
- Call the Misericordia Eye Care Centre.
In some cases, you may need to go directly to the ER. If that’s the safest option, we’ll let you know right away.
See Sudden Changes? Let’s Take a Closer Look, Right Away
All four of our Winnipeg locations offer emergency eye care during office hours. If you're experiencing vision changes, pain or loss, contact us. We’re here to help in case of an emergency.
