"Intraocular eye injection"

 About six months ago I was diagnosed with retinal oedema secondary to retinal vein occlusion, and I was told that the treatment would be regular eye injections. The treatment has been miraculous so far as I am concerned; from having very fuzzy vision in my eye, and not being able to hit the ball when playing my favourite activity, tennis, I now have full vision in both eyes, absolutely wonderful, especially having been told at the start of my treatment that the aim was only to stop my vision from deteriorating further.

I was naturally very nervous initially of having an injection actually into my eye. However, the first four injections, each given by a different clinician, were not too uncomfortable and I had no anxiety about my next appointment. But my latest injection was totally different. The pain at the time of injection was very severe, and when the injector noted my ‘discomfort’, there was no apology, rather I was berated for having moved my eye during the procedure (which I am very sceptical of, as moving your eye is the big no no during the procedure which you concentrate on more than anything else)

It may sound dramatic, but I was in a state of bewilderment after the procedure, and walked out of the room in a sort of daze, totally shocked at my recent experience. The pain resolved rapidly over the following quarter of an hour or so.

My concern is that most patients would be afraid to complain about this, fearing that their future treatment would be prejudiced. However my anxiety many patients might feel like myself and if no one says anything, unnecessary pain and anxiety may continue. 

I am due to continue with regular eye injections and I anticipate my next one with trepidation! I am certainly going to find a way to find out if I can't choose my clinician, and I certainly need to be able to decline this previous one.