Halifax advocates working to improve health care for people with sight loss

Advocates with sight loss and people in the medical field in Halifax have been working on a number of initiatives to improve the delivery of health care for people who are blind or partially sighted. 

Dalhousie University medical student Tyler Herod, who has helped lead some of the efforts, said focus groups have identified a number of barriers those patients can encounter.

For instance, he said if a health-care worker doesn't announce their presence when approaching a patient with sight loss, the patient isn't always able to determine who is there and what they are there for. 

Shelley Adams, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind's manager of advocacy for Atlantic Canada, has experienced barriers herself when she's been in the hospital.

"The nurse will come in, they're changing every 12 hours … and it's almost like you have to explain every time your eye condition, that you can't see very well," said Adams, who is blind and has partnered with Herod on health-care projects.

"That can be a lot to deal with when you're in there … for other reasons, dealing with other health issues."

To address situations like that, a sign has been developed that can be placed near admitted patients with sight loss, with their consent. The sign includes tips for health-care workers, including advice on delivering food.

"A lot of people, they don't realize that the meals have been dropped off," Adams said. "Even if they do, they might not … be able to open the packages or know what's on the tray." 

The sign is now being used at the Dartmouth General and Victoria General hospitals, Herod said. Its effectiveness is being formally assessed through a project with the geriatrics department at the Halifax Infirmary.

Since February 2024, Herod, Adams and a CNIB volunteer have also made nine educational presentations to nearly 300 health-care professionals.

The sessions include information on how to improve communication and a demonstration of how to guide a person who is blind or partially sighted.

Feedback has been positive, with the group receiving a growing number of requests to speak.

"The majority of health-care workers have actually no formal education around these topics," said Herod.

"People in the hospital that have been working for 10, 20, 30 years will approach us after the sessions and just talk about how helpful it was to hear about the lived experience of someone with sight loss."

Four more sessions are planned in the coming months, including a presentation in February during the Dalhousie department of medicine grand rounds — an academic teaching session encompassing many hospital departments. 

Adams and Herod have also helped design an interprofessional mini-course for Dalhousie students enrolled in various health profession programs. The course will consist of three sessions and will begin this month.

Ultimately, Adams hopes all this work and education will reach as many health-care professionals as possible and change the patient experience for the better.

"A lot of the things that we're suggesting … are not just going to help people with sight loss, but also the greater community."