Sight Cymru opened its first charity shop in Blackwood at the end of February this year, giving Natasha Asghar MS the opportunity to take a tour and brush up on her optometry at the same time.
Sight Cymru’s fantastic team provide vital services to those with sight loss – whether that’s carrying out assessments in the home to ensure the utmost independence, or giving people a call to catch up and have a chat.
Natasha, who represents South East Wales, was given a full rundown of what people with sight loss experience in their day-to-day lives and how technology can play a pivotal role.
Plus, with different sets of glasses to simulate different conditions, Natasha was able to experience how cataracts, glaucoma and even age-related macular degeneration (AMD) impact your sight.
Sight Cymru has seen an alarming increase in sight loss patients due to the NHS backlog, explaining that it was an area that was hit particularly hard.
They currently have around 6000 users of their service, with volunteers working tirelessly to provide the best possible care.
During the tour, the importance of regular eye exams could not be stressed enough. Early detection is the best step to finding any of the above conditions before they affect your vision.
Speaking after the visit, Natasha Asghar MS:
"The work that Sight Cymru does within the community is fantastic, and I will always fly the flag for more consistent NHS eye services rather than the postcode lottery system we sadly have right now.’
"I will encourage everyone to book an eye test with their optician. It’s vital to catch these conditions in the early stages and this visit reminded me to give mine a call!’
"Most people will not feel any pain when something is wrong with their eyes, which is why it’s so important to have regular eye tests – even if you feel fine."
