By Isle of Wight Observer
An Eye Clinic Liaison Officer (ECLO) from The Royal National Institute of Blind People is one of the organisers behind a Sight Loss Awareness Day which will take place on Saturday, 23rd March in Newport.
Laura Gooljar, who is based at the at the Eye Clinic at St Mary’s Hospital, has jointly organised the day at the Riverside Centre alongside the Eye Clinic’s nurse, Anne Stotesbury.
Several local and national charities and organisations from across the sight loss sector will be there on the day to provide support and advice to residents with sight loss or to people who support somebody who is blind or partially sighted. The Sight Loss Awareness Day, which is free to attend, will take place between 10am and 4pm.
Some of the organisations exhibiting include RNIB, Sight for Wight (formerly the Isle of Wight Society for the Blind), Guide Dogs, International Glaucoma Association and Retina UK.
Laura said: “Sight loss can affect anyone at any time and it can be a frightening and uncertain time in your life. However, there is lots of advice and support available, so I would encourage anybody interested to come along to the Sight Loss Awareness day and find out more. We want to ensure that these services are known to everyone who may need them, today, tomorrow or in the future.”
James Beston, Marketing Lead from Calibre Audio Library said: “We’re thrilled to be returning to the Isle of Wight for the Sight Loss Awareness Day. It’s a fantastic opportunity for us to meet members old and new, as well as demonstrate our audiobook service to help more people regain the freedom to read after sight loss.”
RNIB statistics show that every day 250 people start to lose their sight in the UK. As of 2015, more than two million people in the UK are living with sight loss that is severe enough to have a significant impact on their daily lives, such as not being able to drive.
For more information about the event please email laura.gooljar@rnib.org.uk or phone 07885 210891.
