How to irrigate an ear
Other platforms explain it with text and video. In Making Synapses you practice it on the patient.
Ear irrigation is safe only with an intact eardrum.
Step by step
Check
No eardrum hole, ear tubes, infection or past ear surgery. [1]
Soften
Wax softening drops beforehand if needed. [1]
Warm water
Near body temperature to avoid dizziness. [1]
Direction
Pull the ear up and back, aim at the canal wall, not the eardrum. [1]
Towel and basin
Under the ear. [1]
Stop
Pain, dizziness or bleeding; look with the otoscope after. [1]
Common errors
- Cold water.
- Aiming at the eardrum.
- Irrigating with a perforation.
Practice it in Making Synapses
In Making Synapses you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.
Making Synapses cases that train this skill
- Cerumen impaction
- Acoustic neuroma
- Labyrinthitis
- Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
- Cholesteatoma
- Otosclerosis
13 Making Synapses cases train this skill: open the case library
Sources
- Open RN, Nursing Skills 2e (Chippewa Valley Technical College) (CC BY 4.0)
- OpenStax, Clinical Nursing Skills (reference)
Steps adapted from Open RN, Nursing Skills 2e (Chippewa Valley Technical College), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Facts and steps also follow OpenStax, Clinical Nursing Skills (reference). Making Synapses is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.