Chris and Agnetta attended the Closer to Home Event focused on offering physical and mental wellbeing, job seeking and back to work support. The evening was a great opportunity to answer questions from the general public and to meet other services offering support and guidance.
If you would like to find out more and when the next event will be held please use this link https://www.gov.je/caring/organisations/pages/closertohome.aspx
It was so wonderful to have a small group of members at Westlea Centre today. This is the first time we have welcomed our members back since March. They enjoyed a morning of pebble and tile painting and it looks like they haven’t lost their creative flair!
More workshops are planned in the coming weeks.
Great to hear their chatter again at Westlea.
EYECAN have been busy getting out and about supporting our Islanders with sight impairment.
Lisa, our Community Administrator, recently dropped off some equipment to Barry. Barry is one of EYECANs’ newest members, having recently had a deterioration in his sight with Macular Degeneration. Barry, a keen petanque player, is a gentleman with a lovely sense of humour. He and his wife Gwen expressed thanks to EYECAN. It is an absolute pleasure for EYECAN to offer support to our sight impaired community we strongly believe in enabling our members to be able to do anything, there is nothing that is impossible and none of the team will give up trying to find a solution.
If you know of any Islander with sight loss who would benefit from our assistance please contact us on 01534 864689 or email us at info@eyecan.je.
We all know that the sun releases radiation, one of these is UV which is invisible to the eye. UV rays are responsible for sunburn, but did yo know they can also damage your eyes and vision!
Wearing sunglasses with a built in UV filter this summer can help protect your eyes from UV damage.
UVA and UVB rays in sunlight can harm your eyes and may increase the risk of Cataracts and Age-related Macular Degeneration, the number one cause of sight loss in Britain.
It is a good idea to wear sunglasses whenever you spend time outdoors, but did you know that UV exposure is much higher in areas where there are more reflective surfaces, for example near water? So, protecting your eyes when you are by the sea is particularly important.
When choosing sunglasses only buy those which have a CE mark or carry British Standard BS EN ISO 12312-1. Many tints are available but the lightness or darkness, and the colour of the tint, are largely a matter of choice.
Have a great summer!
EYECAN says a big thank you to Abigail who raised funds for the Charity by having her lovely long hair cut yesterday. As Abigail has sensory issues this was a real challenge for her.
Not only has Abigail raised over £450.00 for EYECAN but she is also donating her cut hair to the Little Princess Trust to help children who experience hair loss after treatment for cancer.
What an amazing young lady you are, Abigail! We think your new haircut looks fabulous! 
Elizabeth Place footpath closure 22nd – 24th July.
Jersey Electricity advises that Elizabeth Place footpath will be closed to pedestrians to enable maintenance work on Wednesday 22nd, Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th July. Crossing points to skirt this area are from the corner of Cheapside onto the traffic island and across to the corner of Parade Gardens, or at the Junction with Saville Street.
Earlier this year amateur photographers of all ages were invited to enter their work into a photography competition to celebrate World Social Work Day on Tuesday 17th March.
Photographers were asked to submit photos on the theme of ‘Promoting the Importance of Human Relationships’.
Below is a wonderful photograph taken of our members and volunteer, taken by Rob Ferchal at Westlea Centre.
At a time when many of us are distanced from family and friends, and when care and kindness are so often provided by neighbours and complete strangers, we are reminded of the power and importance of human relationships.
COVID-19 – HOW ISLANDER’S WITH SIGHT LOSS ARE MANAGING AND HOW EYECAN ARE SUPPORTING THEM
Recently our Rehabilitation Worker Chris Frost and one of our members Jenny Stafford spoke to BBC Radio Jersey. Click on the link below to hear how recent events have impacted the lives of our Islanders with sight loss and how EYECAN are supporting them.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p088b0vz
Chris Frost – 1 Hour 50 Minutes in
Jenny Stafford – 2 Hours 20 Minutes in
We realise that this a difficult time for all the community and especially for Islanders with sight loss. EYECAN is still operational. Every weekday we phone members, offering advice, reassurance and a friendly voice to talk to. When necessary we deliver or arrange delivery of essential items. Our Rehabilitation Officer is able to drop some basic low vision aids at clients’ doors to enable them to maintain their daily activities as normally as possible. He can also undertake a degree of assessment over the phone and provide advice, and referral to other services. EYECAN’s Welfare and Advocacy Officer is also working hard to support clients’ wellbeing at this challenging period in their lives, phoning vulnerable clients regularly and ensuring that they are connected to the support they require. For many Islanders with impaired sight this is an extremely concerning and anxious time. Some will be feeling lonely and isolated. Some will find it difficult to shop for food.
We can help by connecting them to volunteers or stores which deliver. If you know of any Islander with sight loss who would benefit from our assistance please contact us on 01534 864689 or email us at info@eyecan.je.
Please help support Islanders with impaired sight.
Imagine a world in which faces have vanished, obscured by a dark cloud in the centre of your vision. Out of focus impressions remain on the perimeter of your sight but the faces of those you love have disappeared completely, along with the faces of everyone you look at. When you dream you remember faces, but you lose them on awakening.
The voice nearby sounds friendly, but you’re not sure you’re being addressed. There are other people nearby. Eye contact to gauge the speaker’s intentions is not possible. You’ll look a fool if you butt in. You sit quietly, hoping you’re not causing offence. You feel vulnerable, and very lonely.
This is sight impairment.
Strange images begin to haunt your remaining sight. You’re really frightened. Perhaps you have a mental illness? Drifts of flowers curtain your vision, ants swarm across the floor like pools of spreading ink. A black cat curls up comfortably in the seat beside you – but you don’t have a cat! You don’t know it but your brain is filling in the gaps from the limited information it’s receiving from your eyes. The results are alarming.
This is sight impairment.
Shopping is very stressful. Pavements, full of obstacles, narrow and swell in strange distortions. People rushing, crossing in front of you. You feel panicked. You go into a shop. It takes an age to find what you want because when you try to identify the product, read the price, these things vanish behind the dark cloud in the centre of your gaze. Sometimes you snatch something up, hoping it will do. Very often it doesn’t.
You hope the notes you hand to the assistant are the right denomination. You hate to look a fool. Last week you smiled and explained that you’re sight impaired. “Why don’t you wear glasses then?” was the response. You felt sick and humiliated. You made for the nearest loo to try and pull yourself together, but everything vanished in a dazzle of hygienic white. You groped for the fitments, crashed your hip against the sink. You can still feel the bruise.
This is sight impairment.
EYECAN can help. A rehabilitation officer assesses people in their own homes, helps make the environment work for them, matches them to equipment and support which makes life easier. He provides mobility training to enable people to move around confidently wherever they are, and gives tips to help them deal with the visual hallucinations caused by Charles Bonnet syndrome. He can refer them to social and activity clubs where they will meet other people with sight loss. When a member had a bad cold recently 5 other members rang staff to let them know she couldn’t make it that day. Such friendships are invaluable.
EYECAN is always working to raise awareness of the needs of sight impaired islanders. Staff will listen to bad experiences. People don’t usually mean to be unhelpful but Jersey has a legal obligation to be inclusive and staff training, and advice on accessible premises and information, are available from EYECAN.
For more information about EYECAN please visit www.eyecan.je or phone 864869.
29 year old Zoe Morrison experienced significant sight loss 3 years ago. At her eye department appointment, when she was told that it was no longer safe for her to drive, she realised that she would not be able to keep up her job. She was absolutely devastated. “I felt I’d just lost my independence” she says. Her consultant had mentioned that she should get in touch with EYECAN, but it took several weeks before Zoe could bring herself to do this, and 4 – 6 months before she could properly engage with the support on offer. “I didn’t want to admit that I needed help”, she explains. She also thought that social clubs were just for old people.
Zoe is now a popular and committed Activity Club member. Her charming designs regularly feature on EYECAN Christmas cards. Since her first contact with EYECAN the Community Team has provided much practical support to Zoe, including mobility training, and assistive technology to promote her independence. When out shopping Zoe sometimes uses Be My Eyes, an app loaded onto her phone which video-calls a helper who reads product details to her. Zoe can now take note of ingredients, expiry dates and prices. Whenever Zoe has concerns EYECAN has stood beside her, advocating for her, giving her confidence and making sure she is listened to.
Zoe recently finished an Introduction to Counselling course and this year will begin the Level 2 course in Counselling Skills. She says “I have a chance again, my world isn’t over. Technology is a of massive benefit to people with sight loss. And who knows, in time perhaps there’ll be a cure for me. Whatever happens, I feel that I’ve got my independence back.”
EYECAN can help. A Rehabilitation Officer assesses people in their own homes, helps make the environment work the them, matches them to equipment and support which makes life easier. He provides mobility training to enable people to move around confidently wherever they are, and gives tips to help them deal with the visual hallucinations caused by Charles Bonnes Syndrome. He can refer them to social and activity clubs where they will meet other people with sight loss. When a member had a bad cold recently 5 other members rang staff to let them know that she couldn’t make it that day. Such friendships are invaluable.
EYECAN is always working to raise awareness of the needs of sight impaired Islanders. Staff will listen to bad experiences. People don’t usually mean to be unhelpful but Jersey has a legal obligation to be inclusive and staff training, and advice on accessible premises and information are available from EYECAN.
We often hear about the health benefits of a diet rich in natural ingredients, but how many of us realise that such a diet also supports good eye health?
Medical research suggests that by regularly eating colourful fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds and oily fish we could prevent, or slow down the progress, of several eye conditions. Research also indicates that a diet low in saturated fats and high in leafy green vegetables, and also eggs, could delay the progression of cataracts and Age-related Macular Degeneration.
Lots of very good reasons to eat tastily and healthily!
As EYECAN’s Rehabilitation Officer, Chris Frost, points out, “combine such a diet with regular exercise and the risk of acquiring Age-related Macular Degeneration can be reduced even further, whilst maintaining a healthy weight considerably reduces the risk of diabetes, a condition which can lead to sight loss.”
