EYESITE home
FRONT PAGE – UK visual impairment news 2008
These articles are copyright. For permission to use or reproduce them in any format, email the editor
BME services lacking -- Pocklington
December 11, 2008 -- Only 13 projects providing vision services for people from black and minority ethnic communities win the accolade "good practice" in a new guide from Thomas Pocklington Trust. They include projects in Birmingham, Devon, Derbyshire, Tower Hamlets, Bradford and Sheffield.
However, Pocklington says that long-term, effective projects are few and far between. Many projects are add-ons to existing services, rather than being routine. The result is that people from black and minority ethnic communities, who are the most likely to suffer from sight loss, are still the least likely to receive the necessary care.
The Pocklington guide is entitled "People from Black and minority ethnic communities and vision services: A Good Practice Guide".
~~~~~~~~~~
UK schools face VI teacher shortfall -- report
December 11, 2008 -- Many specialist teachers of visually impaired children will be retiring over the next decade, leading to a potential shortfall in experienced staff, according to a report from NFER (National Foundation for Educational Research) and the RNIB.
The report -- Educational provision for blind and partially sighted children and young people in England: 2007 – says: “Within the next ten to 15 years, over half the current staff will have retired and their replacements, on the basis of the current age profile, are more likely to be aged over 50 than to be in their 30s.”
The report also found that, although the level of staffing was not high, some VI services felt they had sufficient staff, skills and resources to meet all needs. On the other hand, other services were concerned about the need for staff to be multi-skilled or responsible for too large an area (whether geographically based or needs based).
Research carried out for the report suggests that at least 21,946 children aged 5-16 are visually impaired. This compares with 8,625 who are registered blind and partially sighted and reflects “concerns that levels of registration do not reflect the full extent of visual problems.”
~~~~~~~~~~
NHS sight tests hit 11 million in 2007/8
December 3, 2008 -- Figures from the NHS Information Centre show an increase in the number of NHS sights tests to 11 million in the year to end March 2008, up 1.4 million from 2002/3.
Separately, the NHS Information Centre published the General Ophthalmic Services Workforce Statistics for England and Wales report for the year to end 2007. This shows a 19 percent increase in the number of ophthalmic practitioners in England to more than 9,600 compared with 2002.
~~~~~~~~~~
Astbury takes over as chair of Vision 2020 UK
December 2, 2008 -- Nick Astbury, former President of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, is the new chair of Vision 2020 UK. He succeeds Stephen Remington, chief executive of Action for Blind People, who established Vision 2020 UK in 2001.
David Scott-Ralphs, chief executive of SeeAbility, becomes Vision 2020 UK's vice-chairman. Rob Hogan, President of the College of Optometrists, joins the charity as a trustee.
~~~~~~~~~~
Disabled prone to work place bullying
November 27, 2008 -- Disabled people are more likely than others to be the targets of bullying and harassment at work, according to research carried out by Cardiff University and the University of Glamorgan for the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
In a survey of nearly 4000 workers, the British Workplace Behaviour Survey 2008 found that employees with a disability or long term illness were more likely to suffer bullying, humiliation and even physical violence.
The survey also found that some employers have low expectations of disabled staff and check up on or supervise them more than other employees.
~~~~~~~~~~
Durham survey finds shortcomings
November 4, 2008 -- The Durham Sight Loss Survey Partnership has identified failings in terms of lack of emotional support, poor provision of accessible information, a lack of coordination between service organisations and some gaps in provision.
Among those surveyed most were unaware of the benefits that rehabilitation can provide. Many were frustrated about the poor appreciation of the needs and difficulties of visually impaired people when using public and retail services.
The three members behind the Partnership are Action for Blind People, Blind Life in Durham and County Durham Society for the Blind and Partially Sighted.
~~~~~~~~~~
RNIB and Action announce link-up
October 24, 2008 -- RNIB and Action for Blind People are to combine regional service delivery across England, with Action becoming an Associate Charity of RNIB. The agreement in principle, which has yet to be finalised, is due to begin in April 2009. Services on the ground will be delivered under the Action for Blind People brand.
RNIB chief executive Lesley-Anne Alexander said in a statement: “this will lead to a radical improvement in the availability of high quality services for blind and partially sighted people.” Later, she added that “there is a lot of interest in the associate charity model. You can adapt it to suit different circumstances by taking different aspects, but always with the aim of making life better for visually impaired people.”
Action for Blind People chief executive Stephen Remington said that the charities shared the same goal “to put an individual blind or partially sighted person's needs at the heart of what we do, which is why combining our services makes so much sense. We want every person affected by sight loss to receive the emotional and practical support they need at the time they need it most. This agreement is a major step on the way to achieving this.”
RNIB and Action for Blind People discussed the possibility of a full-blown merger several years ago, but failed to reach agreement at the time.
~~~~~~~~~~
LOOK drops merger plans with RNIB
October 23, 2008 -- LOOK, the charity for families with visually impaired children, has dropped plans to merge with the RNIB due to legal obstacles. “However, both LOOK and the RNIB remain close and are looking forward to working together in the future,” LOOK said in a letter to members.
“Going forward we will continue to seek out partnerships that will put LOOK on a secure footing for the long term,” said LOOK chair Clive Furness. He added that the charity is financially secure and continues to support families and enable young people with a visual impairment.
~~~~~~~~~~
Eye Health Alliance launches website
October 22, 2008 -- The Eye Health Alliance, which brings together professional and representative optical bodies and eye care charities to campaign for better eye health, has set up a website at http://www.eyehealthalliance.co.uk
The Alliance attends NHS and health professional conferences plus party political conferences to raise awareness of eye health. It also holds an annual parliamentary reception to ensure parliamentarians understand the role of eye care for their constituents.
~~~~~~~~~~
Record blind protest to MPs
October 15, 2008 -- Some 1500 people protested to their MPs about the unfair Disability Living Allowance (DLA) rules for visually impaired people in the biggest ever demonstration of its kind.
Many protesters were kept waiting in the rain outside the House of Parliament in London, but they still made the point that people with severe sight loss should be eligible to claim the higher rate mobility component of DLA.
~~~~~~~~~~
Eye care fails elderly
October 13, 2008 -- Many older people are not taking simple steps such as wearing glasses to correct their vision, often because of a lack of money. Research sponsored by the Thomas Pocklington Trust found that almost a third of South London optical practices do not provide spectacles whose cost is fully covered by NHS Optical Vouchers.
"The notion that older people with visual problems will fully engage in eye care services is clearly nothing more than an ideal," says Professor Bruce Evans, author of the study entitled “Improving the detection of correctable low vision in older people. This research confirms there is a high level of correctable visual loss among older people and shows the need for methods that encourage them to seek eye care."
The study found that more than half of a sample of South Londoners aged over 65 had correctable eye problems, including one in three whose low vision simply required correction with new glasses.
~~~~~~~~~~
Report highlights failings in VI support
October 12, 2008 -- Hospital eye clinics are failing many patients at the critical point when they are certified as blind or partially sighted, according to a survey by the Visual Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research at Birmingham University.
The Network 1000 Survey 2 found that only 70% of those questioned were satisfied with the service they received. That figure fell to 56% of those of working age. Forty-five percent of respondents said they did not receive an explanation of the registration process at the time of certification in the eye clinic.
Seventeen percent received no help or information in the eye clinic other than medical diagnosis and treatment. The following comments were typical:
“You don’t really know what there is and what you need to know – it’s things you find out later that makes you wonder why you weren’t told things.”
“Initially I felt they had tried to explain, but then when I needed answers later on it was difficult to get hold of somebody.”
Some described services as passive, bureaucratic, inefficient, or under resourced, adding that they often had to find things out for themselves and then contact the services in question. In contrast, others welcomed being contacted once a year to check whether they needed any support. The survey found that the way people are treated varies greatly, as the following comments from two of the participants show:
“The medical staff were quite rude [..]. Poor awareness of the nurse at the time of registration.”
“I thought they were very good -- especially the nurse who told me about it all.”
The report, entitled “Access to information, services and support for people with visual impairment”, was written by Graeme Douglas, Sue Pavey and Christine Corcoran. It is based on interviews with 884 visually impaired people between November 2006 and January 2007.
~~~~~~~~~~
Eye disease data goes online
October 9, 2008 -- Several UK organisations have pooled resources to create an online database showing the prevalence of four common eye conditions -- glaucoma, cataract, age-related macular degeneration and low vision. This is the first time anyone has attempted to make such detailed data on individual eye conditions available online.
The National Eye Health Epidemiological Model (NEHEM) initiative’s figures are based on epidemiological and population studies and go some way to filling the gaps in visual impairment statistical data. In a statement accompanying the launch, Action for Blind People chief executive Stephen Remington referred to a notorious shortage of reliable data for eye conditions.
Dr Steve Hajioff, who has been closely involved in the development of NEHEM, said in aninterview: “I would go further than that. I would say that we are largely bereft of health needs across the whole nation. It’s as true in the visual impairment sector as it is in many other sectors. We have always been planning services on the basis of out-turn plus or out-turn minus – what we did last year and what we are going to do this year on the basis of that. Rather than this is actually what the need is out there. This seeks to address that information deficiency.”
Having accurate data on how many people have a particular condition or disease is very important when new treatments become available, says Hajioff. “If you have a prevalence model and you then have a new treatment, it becomes really easy to work out how many people you will need to employ to deliver that treatment and what it will cost to provide that treatment in a given locality. Up to this point, it’s been lick your finger and hold it in the air to get that sort of feel, because you could only guess.”
In the visual impairment sector, he points out, it would be very helpful for planners to know exactly how many people have wet AMD (Age related Macular Degeneration). In September, NICE (the National Institute for Clinical Excellence) finally approved a new drug treatment for wet AMD in the form Lucentis.
NEHEM hopes that its data will enable health-care commissioners and providers to compare reliable, scientific estimates of local need to identify priorities and areas for new investment. Although based on the best available data, Hajioff said that the NEHM figures are modelled predictions “and they will be subject to a degree of variability.”
For cataracts, for example, NEHEM provides two different estimates. The higher estimate is based on standard measures of visual acuity, while the lower one is based on a subjective quality of life assessment by the individual. “They are both valid approaches and we’ve put both there as a choice so that planners can make different determinations,” said Hajioff.
NEHEM has been developed by the Public Health Action Support Team (PHAST) at Imperial College, London. It was commissioned by bodies representing opticians and ophthalmologists and funded by the Local Optical Committee (LOC) Central fund, At least one other large organisation in the sector is expected to publish eye condition statistics next year
~~~~~~~~~~
UK backs accessible school books project
October 7, 2008 -- The UK Government is backing a pilot project to provide accessible textbooks to blind, partially sighted and dyslexic children in England. RNIB research shows that many blind and partially sighted children get some materials later than their sighted classmates, leaving them struggling to catch up and feeling less independent.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) is inviting tenders to look at ways of providing books and other materials in IT based formats accessible to visually impaired and dyslexic pupils.
~~~~~~~~~~
Longer life equals more blind -- WHO
October 1, 2008 -- As life expectancy increases so will the number of blind people, warns the World Health Organisation. Some 45 million people worldwide are blind. In more than three out of every four cases, that sight loss could have been prevented or treated.
The two major causes of preventable sight loss are cataracts and diabetes.
~~~~~~~~~~
VI less likely to be in work -- survey
September 30, 2008 -- Visually impaired (VI) people are less likely to be in work than the population at large according to the “Labour Market Experiences of People with Seeing Difficulties - a Secondary Analysis of the Labour Force Survey” (LFS)..
The research – conducted by the Institute for Employment Studies for the RNIB – confirms previous studies showing that visually impaired people have a higher unemployment rate than other disabled groups. The survey recorded 184,000 working age people as having a seeing difficulty, of whom 108,000 meet the LFS definition of disability.
On a more positive note, the research shows that people with seeing difficulties are relatively well qualified. The researchers also found that a higher than average proportion of visually impaired people who are in work are in high level occupations. On the other hand, in general visually impaired people have less than average earnings.
~~~~~~~~~~
Insight Radio comes to Wales
September 12, 2008 -- RNIB Cymru is to launch Wales’ own Insight Radio station early in 2009. The satellite studio will broadcast from Wales across the UK on RNIB’s national Insight Radio network via SKY, freesat and online. Insight Radio already broadcasts from studios in Glasgow and is Europe's first radio station for a blind or partially sighted audience.
~~~~~~~~~~
RNIB issues good practice in sight guide
September 12, 2008 -- Good practice in sight sets out standards for local authorities providing emotional support for blind and partially sighted people.
The guide lists nine aspects of service delivery with particular relevance for visually impaired people. These are emotional support, referral, assessment, equipment, training, user involvement, responding to complaints and multi-agency working.
Case studies in the guide show how good services make a real difference in practice, The RNIB is sending copies of the guide to directors of adult social services, heads of social services sensory teams, low vision societies and other interested parties.
~~~~~~~~~~
NICE says yes to AMD drug
August 27, 2008 -- All NHS patients in the UK with wet age related macular degeneration (AMD) should now have access to the drug Lucentis following a decision by NICE, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.
The decision could save the sight of around 26,000 people every year. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland had already decided to fund Lucentis (also known as Ranibizumab) treatment.
The Macular Disease Society said: “The compelling and persuasive letters written to the chief executive of NICE played an important role in overturning their first decision to permit treatment only when the second eye started to be affected.”
~~~~~~~~~~
No change likely on DLA benefit
August 25, 2008 -- Although the UK Government understands the argument for extending the higher rate mobility component of DLA (Disability Living Allowance) to people with severe sight loss, it is “not able, at this time, to commit to amending the criteria,” the RNIB said in a letter to supporters.
Steve Winyard, RNIB’s head of policy and campaigns, said: “We feel angry and betrayed by this combination of warm words but lack of action.” The RNIB is going ahead with its planned DLA lobby of Parliament on October 15.
~~~~~~~~~~
Henshaws wins Lottery funding
August 8, 2008 -- The National Lottery has awarded £215,000 to Henshaws Society for Blind People. The north of England based charity will use the money to continue training students on the Skillstep course. It will also create a drop-in IT suite at its Newcastle city centre office.
~~~~~~~~~~
London makes ophthalmology a priority
August 7, 2008 -- Five leading London based research institutes are pooling research resources to focus on 10 areas, one of which is ophthalmology. The institutes include Moorfields Eye Hospital, Great Ormond Street children’s hospital and UCL (University College London).
This new academic health science partnership will be known as UCL Partners.
~~~~~~~~~~
Pocklington survey lists adult VI needs
July 25, 2008 -- Meeting people, friendship and having someone to talk to about personal feelings are among the most important needs of visually impaired adults using the day services provided by the Thomas Pocklington charity.
Other needs identified in a report entitled “Day Services for Adults with Sight Loss: Strategic Issues for Providers” include re-learning how to carry out everyday tasks in the home, finding out about specialist equipment and getting information and advice about other services.
~~~~~~~~~~
Macular makes it to Lottery final
July 24, 2008 -- A Macular Disease Society project to deliver Eccentric Viewing training is one of three finalists in a National Lottery Awards competition with a chance to win £2,000. The results of voting in the category Best Health Project will be announced on August 30.
~~~~~~~~~~
Warwickshire patients win sight saving treatment
July 22, 2008 -- Three patients with AMD (age related macular degeneration) have won a court ruling to receive treatment on the NHS from Warwickshire PCT (Primary Care Trust).
The RNIB estimates that more than half of PCTs in England now provide sight-saving AMD treatment to patients who need it. However, it adds that many others still have “unacceptably restrictive funding policies.”
~~~~~~~~~~
EU spells out equal flying rights
July 18, 2008 -- New European Union regulations mean that from July 26 disabled people – including blind and partially sighted – must be given the same access and information rights when flying as everyone else.
The new Air Regulations are based on Regulation (EC) No 1107/2006. They specify that airlines should train their staff about the needs of visually impaired people. The European Blind Union is asking individuals to report any failure by airports and airlines to comply with the new rules.
~~~~~~~~~~
COMMENT – Sight Village and Right to Read
July 17, 2008 -- “What’s wrong with your eyes?” was a common question at this week’s Sight Village exhibition in Birmingham. For most visually impaired people at the event, there are no cures, whatever their eye condition. although the technology on display can often make life easier – if you can afford it.
But the technology only goes so far. For instance, I heard two people talking about the books they’d read and enjoyed. However, they reluctantly acknowledged that they cannot read 95% of books for the very simple reason that they are not available in accessible formats.
Until we tackle basic injustices like that, all the technology in the world can only provide limited benefits for those with a visual impairment.
~~~~~~~~~~
RLSB closes factory
July 10, 2008 -- The Royal London Society for the Blind is to close its factory in Willesden Junction, North West London on July 31. The unit provided sheltered employment for 33 people, most of who are blind or partially sighted.
The Society said the closure was due to a lack of support from central and local government. Chief executive Brian Cooney added: “The RLSB remains as committed as ever to helping blind and partially sighted adults, but our focus will now be on supporting them into open employment.”
~~~~~~~~~~
LOOK and NN tackle bullying
July 7, 2008 -- The bullying of children was on the agenda at one of the young people’s sessions at the Nystagmus Network’s Open Day on July 5. With help from LOOK, several children discussed how they had been bullied because they are visually impaired.
Adults at the Open Day heard about Leicester University’s work on drug treatments, surgery and the social impact of nystagmus from researcher Rebecca McLean. Doctor Debbie Wiggins explained Cardiff University’s work on nystagmus and stress.
~~~~~~~~~~
Wales fills AMD funding gap
June 26, 2008 -- The Welsh Assembly Government is to provide an additional £5 million to fund treatment of wet AMD (Age-related Macular Degeneration) this year. If the extra funding becomes permanent, the RNIB estimates that it will save the sight of 1,300 people a year in Wales.
Sarah Rochira, Director of RNIB Cymru, said the campaign to secure extra funding was a real example of people power. “We asked the minister to give a clear commitment, and today she has. People with wet AMD should now quickly benefit from these fantastic new treatments.”
Carys Henry, Head of Services at Cardiff Institute for the Blind which was a key participant in the campaign, said: “I have no doubt the 1800 letters we delivered on Monday to local Cardiff AMs (Assembly Members) helped change their minds on this vital treatment."
~~~~~~~~~~
Lottery shortlists Henshaws project
June 23, 2008 -- Henshaws’ “Skillstep to Success” employment project is in with a chance of securing nearly £400,000 funding from the UK’s National Lottery.
The Henshaws Society for Blind People project, which helps visually impaired people into work, is one of 10 on the shortlist. The project which gains the most votes will receive funding from the National Lottery Good Causes Scheme.
~~~~~~~~~~
Low vision groups mull publicity
June 12, 2008 -- Several Low Vision Committees around the UK are looking into ways of highlighting local services so that more people can benefit from them.
Ideas to date include a leaflet in Cheshire, a website in Suffolk and information sheets sent out with local free newspapers. The Low Vision Steering Group (Queen Alexandra College, Birmingham) is collecting ideas to share with others.
~~~~~~~~~~
Pocklington launches housing guide
June 4, 2008 -- Thomas Pocklington Trust, in association with Habinteg (the Housing Association for disabled people), has produced a design guide for developing housing for people with sight loss..
The guide is based on extensive research with visually impaired people and lists over a hundred ways that housing design can improve the lives of people with poor sight. It is aimed at anyone involved in providing accommodation services to people experiencing sight loss, including registered social landlords, architects and building technicians.
~~~~~~~~~~
NALSVI gains two new members
May 31, 2008 -- Eden Voluntary Society for the Blind and Partially Sighted and Blind Life in Durham joined NALSVI during May.
NALSVI (the National Association of Local Societies for Visually Impaired People) is an umbrella group representing several hundred local blind societies in the UK.
~~~~~~~~~~
Low vision book for ophthalmologists
May 30, 2008 -- Guide Dogs has published “Low Vision – The Essential Guide for Ophthalmologists”, written by ophthalmologist Anne Sinclair and optometrist Barbara Ryan.
“This book is a must read for all professionals who take part in the care of patients with visual impairments,” says Brenda Billington, president of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists.
The 80 page book covers the definition of low vision, low vision in daily ophthalmological practice, certification, adaptations to daily life and low vision in children. It is available from Guide Dogs for the Blind Association at £5.
~~~~~~~~~~
Gene therapy improves sight in Leber’s patient
April 27, 2008 -- Researchers from Moorfields and UCL described the use of gene therapy on a patient with Leber’s congenital amaurosis (LCA) as a landmark in the treatment of this particular form of inherited blindness.
Steven Howarth was one of three patients to receive the gene therapy. After treatment, all three patients achieved levels of vision at least equivalent to before the operation, but Howarth benefited from significantly improved night vision.
~~~~~~~~~~
Guardian focuses on lack of vision
April 23, 2008 -- A Guardian newspaper supplement highlights the inequalities faced by visually impaired people following the launch on April 18 of the UK Vision Strategy. Among the key findings are:
67% have no formal qualifications.
66% of blind and partially sighted people of working age do not have jobs.
Only 2% receive any counselling when registered blind.
A lack of co-ordination between professionals such as ophthalmologists, optometrists and rehab workers often means poor service for patients.
~~~~~~~~~~
Retinal implants give hope to RP sufferers
April 21, 2008 -- For the first time in the UK, surgeons at Moorfields Eye Hospital, London, have fitted two blind patients with electronic retinal implants.
The aim of this trial is to restore a basic level of useful vision, in the form of spots of light and shapes of light and dark, to people suffering severe blindness due to Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP).
~~~~~~~~~~
Vision 2020 launches UK Vision Strategy
April 18, 2008 -- Charities, government and medics have combined to develop a UK Vision Strategy in an effort to improve eye care services and avoid preventable sight loss. The strategy is a VISION2020 UK initiative led by the RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People).
Jo Webber, deputy policy director at the NHS Confederation, said: "Around 50 percent of sight loss in the UK is avoidable or treatable, so we can't afford to be complacent. Right now as many as 250,000 people in the UK risk losing their sight simply because they don't know they have glaucoma. Thousands more are struggling to live with such low levels of vision that they would qualify as blind or partially sighted, unaware of the range of options widely available to restore their vision.”
The UK Vision Strategy aims to:
Improve the eye health of the people of the UK.
Eliminate avoidable sight loss and deliver excellent support to those with a visual impairment.
Enhance the inclusion, participation and independence of blind and partially sighted people.
~~~~~~~~~~
Losing sight is biggest fear
April 18, 2008 -- Nine out of ten people in the UK fear losing their sight more than any other sense, according to research carried out for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB).
RNIB chief executive Lesley-Anne Alexander warned that, despite being one of the richest nations in the developed world, the UK is not doing enough to prevent sight loss. “Sight loss increases with age and the UK has an ageing population, so the number of people losing their sight is set to double in the next few decades if we don’t intervene now. We're sitting on a sight loss time bomb."
~~~~~~~~~~
WCB appoints new director
April 7, 2008 -- Wales Council for the Blind (WCB) has appointed Phil Stevens as its next director. Stevens, who currently works for Monmouthshire LHB, replaces outgoing director Vanessa Webb. Stevens takes up his new role on May 5.
~~~~~~~~~~
NICE close to approving AMD drug
April 2, 2008 -- NICE has come a step closer to sanctioning the use of the drug Lucentis for the treatment of AMD (Age Related Macular Degeneration) in England and Wales.
“The Final Appraisal Determination (FAD) issued today by the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is good news for patients – even though the process has taken far too long and has caused misery for thousands of people whose sight,” said Tom Bremridge, chief executive of the Macular Disease Society.
~~~~~~~~~~
Sanderson to head RNIB school
April 1, 2008 -- The RNIB has named Mark Sanderson as the new director of its Vision School and Children’s Home, formerly Rushton School and Children’s Home.
Sanderson joins the RNIB from MENCAP. He is also honorary president of the Albinism Fellowship, where he has been a committee member since 1995.
~~~~~~~~~~
Albinism biggest cause of childhood visual impairment
March 16, 2008 -- Albinism is the most common cause of visual impairment in children (20%) followed by rod cone dystrophy (10%), according to research at a specialist paediatric low-vision assessment clinic at Manchester Royal Eye Hospital.
The researchers examined data on 64 children collected over a 20 month period. Many children had secondary ocular abnormalities, including nystagmus, which was present in 51 of the 64 children (80%) but was considered to be the primary cause of VI in only one child.
~~~~~~~~~~
RNIB Cymru names new director
March 11, 2008 -- Sarah Rochira, currently with Caerphilly Local Health Board, is to take over as RNIB Cymru director on April 30.
Rochira replaces Ruth Marks who is leaving the RNIB to move to the new position of Commissioner for Older People in Wales.
~~~~~~~~~~
LOOK mulls merger with RNIB
March 10, 2008 -- LOOK, the charity for families with visually impaired children, has voted to pursue merger talks with the RNIB.
In LOOK’s Winter 2008 newsletter, chair of trustees Clive Furness said: “Our discussions with RNIB are wide-ranging and whilst not finalised, at this stage I can tell you that we are aiming to establish a stand-alone charity within the RNIB structure.”
~~~~~~~~~~
Most registered VI claim DLA – UK survey
February 29, 2008 -- Research by the University of Birmingham shows that an estimated 85% of people aged 18 to 64 and registered visually impaired in the UK receive Disability Living Allowance (DLA).
However, the research for the Network 1000 Survey also suggests that around 10,000 registered visually impaired people could claim DLA, but do not. The researchers found that the mobility component of DLA is more commonly received than the care component. It is relatively rare for visually impaired people to receive the higher rate within either the mobility or care components of the DLA.
~~~~~~~~~~
IAPB names Hansen as next CEO
February 18, 2008 -- The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) has appointed Dr Larry Hansen as its next CEO. Hansen was formerly CEO of the Carl Zeiss company’s Asia Pacific region.
The IAPB was set up in 1975 as an umbrella organisation to co-ordinate efforts to prevent blindness. Its central office is in Hyderabad, India, and its registered office is in London. IAPB is closely connected with Vision 2020.
~~~~~~~~~~
Eye specialists support childhood screening
February 13, 2008 -- Ophthalmologists and orthoptists in the UK and Ireland have endorsed new proposals for regular eye screening of all children.
The proposals from the National Screening Committee (NSC) state that all newborn infants should be examined for eye problems. They also recommend that all children should be screened for visual impairment when they are four to five years old. At the same time, the NSC has agreed that screening for vision defects in seven year old children should be discontinued.
~~~~~~~~~~
Give advice at diagnosis -- research
January 29, 2008 -- Visually impaired people need information about the support available to them at or shortly after diagnosis. A pilot study by the RNIB suggests that people should be offered a one to one interview as early as possible to identify their information needs. The research is the first part of a three year study by the RNIB entitled “Early Reach and Support”.
~~~~~~~~~~
Charity boosts free blind helpline
January 21, 2008 -- UK charity Action for Blind People is expanding the service offered by its national freephone helpline for blind and partially sighted people. The helpline (0800 915 4666) currently handles around 10,000 calls a year.
“The helpline has always provided an invaluable service to callers, but whereas in the past callers were simply given useful information and advice, we can now take on clients and work with them over a period of time and support them to address their issues,” said Peter Holton, the new helpline manager.
~~~~~~~~~~
Blind people vulnerable to attack - survey
January 21, 2008 -- Blind and partially sighted people are more likely to be physically or verbally abused than sighted people, says UK charity Action for Blind People. A survey published by the charity shows that 1.2 million blind and partially sighted people have experienced physical and/or verbal abuse.
Action for Blind People chief executive Stephen Remington said: “Unfortunately visually impaired people can be seen as vulnerable and an easy target for anti-social behaviour. The impact this can have on a visually impaired person, who may already feel vulnerable can be devastating, perhaps even more so than for a sighted person.”
~~~~~~~~~~
Rehab workers reckon numbers falling
January 11, 2008 -- Research carried out by rehab workers suggests that the profession could be down to around 500 members in the UK. Only 395 have registered on a professional website (rehabworker.co.uk). These figures compare with an estimate of 1,250 rehab workers in 1994.
~~~~~~~~~~
News archive
-- UK visual impairment news 2006/7
Email: John Sanders
EYESITE home
© John Sanders, 2006-2008