The new philosophy o f care in the community for multi-handicapped people is at risk o f closing down opportunities for sensory impaired adults unless services are planned and implemented to take account of their distinctive needs The key issues facing service managers relate to the hitherto unrecognised high demand of this group which will increase significantly between now and the end of the century. This article examines some of these issues, and the development of services to fulfil the needs of service users who are sensory impaired and of the staff who work with them.
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