News
Know Your Risk: Glaucoma UK launches interactive online quiz to help prevent sight loss
Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness in the UK – it can affect anyone, at any time, and is often symptomless. Approximately 700,000 people in the UK have glaucoma, but 50% of them don’t know - if...
New support pathway for children with sight loss launches to address vital need for consistency of care
A new eye care support pathway to help children and young people with a vision impairment get the support they need, has been launched today by partners from across the sight loss sector. This sets out the care and services...
Blind Inverclyde woman finds her voice
Claire Forde (29) from Greenock is no stranger to a microphone. Her journey into public speaking took a major step forward this year when she joined a newly launched Speakers Club, created to improve the confidence and communication skills of...
More Than Just a Call: RNIB’s Talk and Support Groups combatting loneliness
Every Thursday at 11am, something quietly powerful happens across Scotland. Phones ring, voices chime in, and a group of blind and partially sighted people connect for an hour that’s full of laughter and real talk. It’s an RNIB Talk and...
Greater Manchester residents asked to share views on eyecare services
NHS Greater Manchester is calling on residents to share their experiences of using eye care (ophthalmology) services as part of a region-wide evaluation aimed at improving care for people with eye disorders. This eight-week listening exercise, running from today, Monday,...
99-year-old Navy Veteran to attend VE Day 80 Concert in London thanks to Sight Scotland Veterans
As the nation prepares to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, one remarkable veteran is getting ready for a once-in-a-lifetime trip to London to honour the day he helped secure. Hector McDonald, a 99-year-old Royal Navy veteran from Livingston,...
Shocking experiences of blind patients lead to improved cervical screening standards
Blind women in Scotland have reported distressing experiences when attending cervical screening appointments, with some describing procedures as “rough” and “painful,” and feeling uninformed and unsupported throughout. There are over 180,000 people with sight loss in Scotland, of whom 60%...
New genomic test saves Moorfields patient’s sight
Moorfields patient Ellie Irwin’s stubborn and debilitating eye inflammation was successfully treated as a result of a new metagenomic service identifying the cause of this as a rare infection. In 2019, Ellie first got symptoms of uveitis, a condition characterised...
Blind astrophysicist inspires next generation
Eilidh Morrison (23), a physics graduate from Aberdeen and Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYP) was starstruck last month when she met her long-time inspiration, blind astrophysicist Dr Wanda Díaz-Merced. Born with Joubert Syndrome, a rare condition that includes...
New research shows the unhealthy state of access to medicine and medical devices for blind patients
Blind and partially sighted people could become ill from medicines and medical devices, because they are not being listened to when it comes to designing, prescribing and administering treatments. The Safety Gap’ report commissioned by the Patient Safety Commissioner, Prof...
Dolby’s Sound of a Masterpiece: Hear what Da Vinci's Mona Lisa and Monet's Water-Lily Pond sound like
Dolby Laboratories and Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) have reimagined the world’s most famous artwork masterpieces - from Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa to David Hockney’s A Bigger Splash - to create an immersive soundtrack, in state-of-the-art Dolby Atmos...
Greater awareness of children’s vision care is urged by the profession
Greater attention needs to be given to children’s vision, believes the profession, as a recent survey by Mumsnet reveals that visits to the optometrist are lower down the agenda than dental visits. It found that 9% of parents saw no...
