Visual impairments
Registration
Who decides if I am registerable? Only a consultant ophthalmologist can certify that someone is eligible to be registered. If the condition you have affects both eyes and is not correctable by spectacles, contact lenses, or treatment, you may be certified as eligible to be registered blind or partially sighted.
With your permission, your consultant will complete form BD8 and the form is then sent to the rehabilitation service who offer registration. In addition to advice about any benefits or services available to you, you will be offered a full assessment of your needs.
Assessment and eligibility
A specialist assessment can be carried out in your own home. The assessment may highlight everyday problems you might have caused by deteriorating sight, where advice, equipment, or training from our specialist team could be helpful. The assessment gives you the opportunity to talk about any difficulties you are facing. Some needs may be best addressed by other organisations. The rehabilitation officer will give you information about these.
We decide if you are eligible for these services through a programme called Fair Access to Care Services. After you have been assessed we will send you an eligibility checklist to show you how we have decided on the services you can receive.
Low vision aids
There are a variety of optical aids to assist with both near and distance vision. Many of these are available on loan at no cost from the Manor Hospital Eye Service. To access this, you need to be a patient of an eye consultant at Manor Hospital’s ophthalmology department. If the eye consultant feels this is appropriate, you may then be referred to the hospital’s low vision clinic for assessment.
If you are not currently an ophthalmology patient, you will need to be referred by your doctor for an opinion about your eyes.
The rehabilitation team provides a follow up service to those who attend the low vision clinic at the Manor Hospital or Wolverhampton Eye Infirmary, to give advice and training in the use of aids issued.
The team has recently established a low vision therapy group, another opportunity to practice using low vision aids in a supportive setting.
Services for children
The rehabilitation team provides training and/or equipment for visually impaired children, to assist with the development of independence. If you have a query about a child with a vision problem please contact Children and families.