The right way to put in eye drops and ointment

Dr. Swati Goyal · 26 May 2025 · 4 min

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Doctors usually prescribe two kinds of eye medicine — drops and ointment. Both only work if they reach the right place. The technique is simple, but a few things in it are commonly missed.

Before you start

First be clear which medicine goes in which eye, and how many times a day. Wash your hands with soap and dry them properly.

If more than one bottle has been prescribed, do not put them in together. Leave at least five minutes between two medicines — otherwise the first is washed out by the second and does not get its full effect.

Putting in eye drops

1. 1

   Pull the lower lid gently downwards — a small pocket forms.

2. 2

   Put one drop into that pocket. Do not let the nozzle touch the eye or the lid.

3. 3

   Close the eye and stay still for a moment.

4. 4

   Wipe away any extra medicine with a clean tissue.

There is room for variation. You can tilt your face back while standing, or lie on the bed and do it yourself — whichever is comfortable.

How to apply ointment

Patients often ask whether ointment goes outside the eye or inside. The answer is inside. The ointment has to reach inside the eye for it to do its work.

1. 1

   With clean, dry hands, take a little ointment on your fingertip.

2. 2

   Pull the lower lid down and apply the ointment along the inside of it.

3. 3

   Open and close the eye two or three times so the ointment spreads evenly.

If you can, have someone else apply the ointment — it goes in more easily from another person’s hand than your own.

Putting drops in a child’s eye

This is the question parents ask most. The child will not let you open the eye at all — but you do not need force, there is an easier way.

1. 1

   Lay the child on the bed and ask them to keep the eye closed.

2. 2

   Place a drop in the inner corner of the closed eye, on the side nearest the nose.

3. 3

   Now ask them to open and close the eye. The drop runs in on its own and spreads evenly.

This causes the child the least distress — and makes them less afraid of the next dose.

If a medicine causes strong burning, swelling or any change in vision, speak to your eye specialist before carrying on with it.