feature: Three steps to help
10 September 2008
A new service to help people with significant sight problems has been launched in the borough.
The Low Vision Service is for adults who have significant loss of sight which cannot be corrected by glasses or contact lenses.
The service is based at the Winkfield Resource Centre in Winkfield Road and is a collaboration between Haringey Council, Haringey TPCT and the Haringey Phoenix Group.
Help includes:
- a Low Vision Assessment which will be carried out by an optometrist who can then provide equipment such as a magnifier on loan;
- rehabilitation staff from Haringey Council who will be on hand to assess their day-to-day needs and what help someone needs; and
- the Haringey Phoenix Group, a voluntary organisation which runs user groups and organises activities for people with sight problems and one to one support.
There are more than 1,700 people who are registered either blind or with severe sight problems in the borough, although it is thought that there are many more people who are not registered and perhaps not aware of the services available.
Apart from magnifiers, other equipment which can help includes white canes for mobility, phones with big buttons to help people dial the right number, lighting and talking clocks and watches.
Rehabilitation work includes helping people cope round the home, for example using the cooker and handling hot or boiling items safely. Staff also help people gain confidence to get out and about – remaining in employment, walking to local shops or the school to drop off their children. Help is also given to relatives and friends, giving them guidance on how they can help users too.
The Phoenix Group also runs Braille classes as well as gardening, computer and craft events and offers a talking newspaper service.
Cllr Bob Harris, cabinet member for adult social care, said:
|Back to top“This new service will make it easier for people to get the help and support they need. Sight problems shouldn’t mean that people are trapped in their homes.”
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