responsibilities rather than merely recipients of care, who should be grateful for whatever goodwill is handed to them. All EU countries have signed the UNCRPD: United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The purpose of the Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities. It represents a significant change in approach: it treats disability as a human rights issue, rather than only as a social welfare matter. The concept of disability enshrined in the Convention refers to long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. Also VIOPs want to be able to use the latest smart phones, access the internet, connect with family abroad on Skype or email and, even where confidence and capacity to go out and about may be compromised, they want to be part of their chosen network of people, social connections and activities. Rehabilitation has therefore moved beyond, but still includes, traditional models of orientation and mobility and independent living to embrace new opportunities through technology while holding onto the values of peer support, group and one-on-one training and maximising potential. Rehabilitation outcomes for older people, which they have an input into defining, should be part of any rehabilitation service, and in particular for older people many of whom, due to changing – demographics in Europe and the current causes of most sight loss, are engaging with services for the first time in later life. Models of rehabilitation should be evaluated, reviewed and revised as an integral part of the rehabilitation process and continue to reflect the needs people seeking it and the evolution of the society of which people with impaired vision continue to contribute to as citizens. A structured approach to rehabilitation is the most important sense we possess in understanding our environment and any loss of sight has an impact on our quality of life although individuals may be slow to recognise such impact where the sight loss progresses slowly. It may be delayed because of a general acceptance of functional loss across sight, hearing and mobility as a natural accompaniment of age. Awareness may only become inescapable when an individual meets a situation where
responsibilities rather than merely recipients of care, who should be grateful for whatever goodwill is handed to them. All EU countries have signed the UNCRPD: United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The purpose of the Convention is to promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities. It represents a significant change in approach: it treats disability as a human rights issue, rather than only as a social welfare matter. The concept of disability enshrined in the Convention refers to long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. Also VIOPs want to be able to use the latest smart phones, access the internet, connect with family abroad on Skype or email and, even where confidence and capacity to go out and about may be compromised, they want to be part of their chosen network of people, social connections and activities. Rehabilitation has therefore moved beyond, but still includes, traditional models of orientation and mobility and independent living to embrace new opportunities through technology while holding onto the values of peer support, group and one-on-one training and maximising potential. Rehabilitation outcomes for older people, which they have an input into defining, should be part of any rehabilitation service, and in particular for older people – many of whom, due to changing demographics in Europe and the current causes of most sight loss, are engaging with services for the first time in later life. Models of rehabilitation should be evaluated, reviewed and revised as an integral part of the rehabilitation process and continue to reflect the needs people seeking it and the evolution of the society of which people with impaired vision continue to contribute to as citizens. A structured approach to rehabilitation is the most important sense we possess in understanding our environment and any loss of sight has an impact on our quality of life although individuals may be slow to recognise such impact where the sight loss progresses slowly. It may be delayed because of a general acceptance of functional loss across sight, hearing and mobility as a natural accompaniment of age. Awareness may only become inescapable when an individual meets a situation where
EBU-joint-position-paper-on-Rehabilitation.docx