Newsletter for Spring 2007: Issue 17

This information is also available in Braille, on tape or, if you prefer, by e-mail. If you wish to receive your newsletter in any of these formats, give us a call on 01495 763650 and speak to Sam.

Newsletter Contents

Clicking one of the content links below will take you to the relevant section if you do not wish to read the entire newsletter.

Staff Changes at GAB

We welcome our new driver Robert Tabbott to the fold and hope he will soon feel at home.

Our much-loved receptionist, Sam, has moved on to pastures new and will be sadly missed. Sam has left the area and we wish her all the best for the future. Our admin team member, Emma, will be managing the reception area in Sam's place.

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GAB at the Royal Gwent Eye Clinic

GAB's new information desk at the hospital eye clinic has been very well used by patients requiring information about services available to them or those who are newly registered and want to find out about the registration process. The new Information Officer is Lissa who also manages our Resource Centre in Pontypool. Lissa is at the clinic on Tuesday and Thursday mornings but if you miss her and would like any information on the services or equipment available, or to speak to someone informally, she will be happy to help. Please telephone Lissa on 01495 763650.

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Massages at Bradbury House

Beginning in March, and every first Wednesday of the month thereafter, Tony Harris will be providing massage services at our Resource Centre in Pontypool. There is a very small charge of only £7 an hour, for sports massage, Swedish massage, hot stones, reflexology and general help with aches and pains. Please telephone 07776 060481 to book a session.

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Technology and Information Day

Instead of our normal venue, we are holding our annual Technology and Information Day on 2nd May at the Gwent Visual Impairment Service's offices at Brecon House, Llantarnam Business Park, Cwmbran NP44 3AB between 10am and 4pm.

This will be the biggest exhibition and conference for visually impaired people in Wales so come to try out all the latest technology and talk to suppliers about new equipment and services. This year, for the first time we shall have conference speakers as follows:

Programme for Technology Day Speakers

Time	Organisation	Speaker
10.30am	Rehabilitation Services	Peter Venables
11.30am	Low Vision Scheme	Barbara Ryan
12.30pm	Macular Degeneration	Gwyn Dickinson
1.30pm	Marfan Syndrome	Valerie Greatorex
2.30pm	Future of Optometry	Lynn Hanford
3.30pm	Nystagmus	John Sanders

There is no need to book but places are on a first come first served basis.

For further information please call us on (01495) 763650, or email Nirmala Pisavadia or Richard Phillips.

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Sport Taster Day - June 13th

On 13th June, come and try out sports such as golf, cricket, archery, swimming, yoga, line dancing, bowls, tai chi, dry slope ski-ing and tandem bikes at our sports taster day. This year we have decided to return to the newly refurbished Pontypool Leisure Centre, and the day will run from 10am to around 3.30pm. Whilst you are more than welcome to come regardless of any sight and/or hearing impairment you have, we do ask that you bring your own guide as we do not have enough staff to provide this level of attention. Your guide can, of course, join in all the activities.

Before starting any activities you will need to join us for the induction session so that we can outline where each activity is located so please make your way to the ground floor canteen at 10am. It will save time if you have filled in the necessary documentation beforehand, so please call 01495 763650 to complete over the telephone. Most social services departments are organising group travel, so please telephone them if you want to come as part of a group.

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Technology Workshops at GAB

If you would like to learn how to use technology that can help with your sight loss, get in touch to see what we have on offer.

We have computers with different speech and magnification software so that the writing on the screen can be much bigger or can be spoken out loud. For those of you who are familiar with software, you may be interested to know that we have JAWS, Supernova, Thunder, Guide, Windoweyes and much more.

We also have scanners and document readers, talking book machines and mp3 players. We have large magnification systems and if you would like to learn how to use a computer or a talking book machine, a dictation system or some other piece of equipment to help you read, write or communicate please get in touch.

We can teach on a one-to-one basis or in small groups and we can help you select the best equipment for you, given your sight loss, eye condition, budget and preference! We can help with grants wherever possible.

To find out more, please telephone (01495) 763650 and speak to Richard Phillips or Andrew Hillier.

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Club News

We held our first Club Forum on 16th January at Bradbury House, and most clubs sent representatives.

The opportunity was taken to share information about how the various clubs run, what events they carry out, how they raise funds etc., and it was agreed that in future clubs would send in information for this newsletter. Existing clubbs are:

List of Clubs in Greater Gwent area

Club name	Where does it meet	When does it meet
Abergavenny	Abergavenny	Monday afternoons
Art Club	Bradbury House, Pontypool	Mondays (monthly)
Blackwood	Fleur De Lis	Alternate Mondays
Risca	Risca	Alternate Wednesdays
Monmouth	Monmouth	Monthly Monday lunchtimes and Thursday evenings
Ramblers	Various	Meet monthly for walks throughout the county
Visualisers	Ebbw Vale	Weekly
Torfaen	Bradbury House, Pontypool	Alternate Monday afternoons
Tredegar	Tredegar	Wednesday afternoons
Yoga Club	Torfaen based	Tuesday evenings
Vision Club		Alternate Friday evenings
Newport Club	Newport	Thursday afternoons

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Volunteers Wanted

As a Charity we rely a great deal on the goodwill and support of the community to help us in delivering valuable services to the people who need it the most. If you have any time to spare and feel you have what it takes to help us in anyway: transportation, computer buddy, helping in the office, or befriending our more vulnerable clients, then please contact us on 01495 763650. Your help is invaluable.

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Eye Health Examination and Primary Eye Care Acute Referral Scheme (PEARS)

The Welsh Assembly Government has introduced two special types of eye examinations for selected categories of patients who live in Wales:

Eye Health Examination

The examination is available if you are in one of the following groups:

1. You have sight only in one eye
2. You have a hearing impairment
3. You suffer from retinitis pigmentosa
4. Your family origins are Black African, Black Caribbean, Indian, Pakistani or Bangladeshi

Research shows that certain groups of people are more likely to develop symptoms of cataracts, glaucoma, diabetes and other eye related diseases.

Primary Eye Care Acute Referral Scheme (PEARS)

Do you have an acute eye problem and you think it is serious? With this new, completely free scheme, you can visit an optometrist who is registered with the WECI scheme and have an appointment on the same day. This scheme also allows GPs to refer patients with sudden eye problems straight to a registered optometrist. Optometrists are well placed in the community to check out these types of eye problems quickly and effectively.

Further information can be obtained from the web site of the Welsh Eye Care Initiative.

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Low Vision Services in Caerphilly

Caerphilly falls between three main hospitals: Prince Charles in Merthyr, The Heath Hospital in Cardiff and the Royal Gwent in Newport.

Many people find it difficult and daunting getting to the main hospitals because of transport and parking, or because of the length of time an ambulance can take. Why not consider Ystrad Mynach as an alternative? There is an outpatient's eye clinic with a Consultant from the Royal Gwent at Ystrad Mynach Hospital every Monday. So if your GP or Optician suggests you see a Consultant you can ask to have that appointment at Ystrad Mynach Hospital.

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Free Personal Care Campaign

The campaign to win free home or personal care for disabled people continues. Since the Assembly's announcement that the election promise of free home care could not be afforded, the Coalition on Care Charging has lobbied and met with WAG to press home the need for this policy to be implemented. Difficulties over definitions have been discussed such as what exactly constitutes personal care and what the costs of disability are. For the latest information, contact Disability Wales: 029 20 887 325 or email them.

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Braille Guns at ASDA

Braille Guns were first introduced into stores in 1998. Braille Guns are dynamo guns used to label products in Braille for blind customers. As tinned products in particular all feel the same to somebody who is blind, it is invaluable for them to have these products marked on a label in Braille which can then be stuck onto the product so they may identify them easily.

This can be achieved either by having a member of staff accompanying the shopper around the store, or at the Customer Service Desk after the shopping has been purchased. ASDA is the only retailer to offer this service across all stores, and they have received a remarkable amount of positive PR as a result.

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Strokes and Sight Loss

A Stroke (also called a C.V.A.) happens when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted. A T.I.A. is a mini-stroke in which the supply is interrupted for a short time.

The most common visual problems, which affect around a third of stroke sufferers, is loss of vision in areas of the visual field. Both eyes are usually affected but the extent of the damage may be different in each eye.

Often a stroke of one side of the brain will cause loss of the peripheral vision on the opposite side. In the most severe cases vision is lost completely on one side: a hemianopia.

The problems this might cause include not being able to detect traffic from one side when crossing the road, or bumping into things.

A stroke may also cause eye movement problems, for example muscles leading to convergence of the eyes, squints or double vision. These particularly make reading difficult.

More information about Stroke and sight loss is available from us on 01495 763650

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Taken for a Ride: DLA Mobility Campaign

RNIB have launched a campaign to highlight the injustice of denying people with serious sight loss the chance to claim the higher rate mobility component of the Disability Living Allowance (DLA), currently £43.45 a week.

Visually impaired people are only eligible to claim the lower rate of £16.50 a week, although they cannot drive and often have difficulties in using public transport. RNIB are encouraging visually impaired people to write to their MP about the campaign, explaining what a move to the higher rate would enable them to do that they currently cannot. If you are willing to take part, call the campaign hotline on 0207 3912123 for a pack, which includes a draft letter to MPs which you may wish to use. You can also ring this number for any other questions about the campaign. A copy of the campaign report, Taken for a Ride, can be viewed on the RNIB web site.

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Sight Village Exhibition

Tuesday 17th - Thursday 19th July, 2007.

Venue: The Clarendon Suites, 2 Stirling Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham.

The Sight Village exhibition showcases all the major suppliers of technology and services for people with a visual impairment.

Admission is free! Gwent Association for the Blind will be going to the event and may have spare seats on the minibus. If you would like to go, there will be a £5 charge towards the fuel costs. Telephone 01495 763650 and book your place (payment required to secure) with Robert.

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A Healthy Lifestyle Can Help Prevent Sight Loss

A new report from RNIB, "Feeling Great, Looking Great" reveals a direct link between obesity and some of the common conditions that cause blindness. The report is part of the RNIB's Open Your Eyes campaign to end preventable sight loss by 2020, and is available to download from the RNIB web site.

A healthy lifestyle includes eating a diet rich in green leafy vegetables which are proven to be really important for good eye health. There is also much evidence now that shows smoking to be one of the major contributors to macular degeneration and cataract. It is also very important to protect your eyes from the effects of the sun by wearing protective UV sunglasses when in strong sunlight.

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