Independent Nurse: Opinion - In My View - Older patients need sight loss checks.

Eye tests are free for older people, yet research shows that up to half have undetected sight loss. Undetected means untreated, but many of the most common causes of visual loss are treatable.

For example, refraction errors, cataracts and some forms of macular degeneration can all be improved with treatment. Glaucoma is also manageable if identified early, but profoundly disabling if not.

Recently, the Thomas Pocklington Trust commissioned research, from University College London, into why older people fail to take up eye tests: we found that fear, denial and fatalism about old age were emotional deterrents, while concern about the cost of glasses also put …