Of the approximate one million people who are registrable as blind or partially sighted nine out of ten are over the age of 60. One in seven of all older people over the age of 75 are registrable as blind or partially sighted. The vast majority will not be totally blind but will have some degree of residual vision.
In the first of a series of articles highlighting the needs, difficulties and problems faced by older visually impaired people, Mark Davis, Community Care Officer - Older People, RNIB Social Services Development Unit, reviews the status of older visually impaired people through a series of official reports and outlines the problems they still face.
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