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IN TOUCH听-听Special school eye tests and a buggy innovation

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TX:听听01.05.2018听 2040-2100

PRESENTER:听听听PETER WHITE

PRODUCER:听听听KEVIN CORE

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White

Good evening.听 Tonight, thousands of vulnerable children whose sight could be endangered by missing out on vital eye tests.听 In Touch has had first sight of a report calling for urgent action.听 And, taking care of baby, an In Touch listener and mum has been road testing a smart baby buggy.

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Clip

Okay, so I鈥檓 feeling two fabric tabs, I feel like those little round circles where your fingers would be - is that right?

Yeah.

Yeah.听 Okay, and they鈥檙e vibrating.听 Oooh okay.

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White

We鈥檒l be hearing more from Hetal later in the programme.

But first, all children in the UK have the right to annual eye tests but a report out tomorrow says thousands of children with learning disabilities aren鈥檛 having those tests.听 This is despite the fact that such children are almost 30 times more likely to develop serious eye problems than those in the general population.听 The report comes from sight loss charity SeeAbility which takes a particular interest in those with learning disabilities.听 Part of the problem is that the process of testing can be confusing and upsetting and it鈥檚 often impossible for these children to explain what they鈥檙e seeing to testers.听 SeeAbility, though, says such problems can be overcome by providing tests in familiar surroundings, such as their school.

Well Alyson Farrell鈥檚 daughter is Ellie and Alyson joins us.听 I mean tell us just a bit about Ellie and her situation.

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Farrell

Ellie鈥檚 12 now, she contracted a virus before she was born called Cytomegalovirus听and that stopped her brain from developing properly and has left her with all sorts of challenges, including the potential for her sight to deteriorate quite significantly.听 And as a result of all of her difficulties she sees lots of specialists including eye specialists, from when she was born she鈥檚 seen an eye specialist at a hospital to check that her eyes are healthy and her sight鈥檚 not deteriorating.

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White

And what were the kind of problems you encountered when Ellie had eye tests?

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Farrell

We would go to an eye clinic at our local hospital.听 In order to do that I obviously have to take Ellie out of school, get to the hospital, find a place to park our wheelchair accessible vehicle.听 Ellie鈥檚 a very clever girl, she knew - she knows when I鈥檓 picking her up from school听that we鈥檙e going somewhere that鈥檚 probably not as much as fun as school.听 We rarely get seen on time, which is an occupational hazard of hospital appointments, and she finds it very stressful because she knows that something is going to be happening that perhaps isn鈥檛 particularly comfortable for her.

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White

And how does she react and how does that affect the test?

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Farrell

Well it means she鈥檚 not very cooperative, she鈥檚 anxious, so she finds it hard to concentrate on what she鈥檚 being asked to do.听 The doctors at the hospital are all great but they don鈥檛 know her very well, they don鈥檛 build up a relationship with her because the doctors are different every time.听 As a result,听it鈥檚 very difficult to establish what her eye health is and get her to perform in the best way for her eye tests.

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White

Well also joining us is SeeAbility鈥檚 Chief Executive, Lisa Hopkins.听 So,听Lisa, how typical is what Alyson has just described?

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Hopkins

Well unfortunately it鈥檚 all too common.听 As you said earlier we know that children with learning disabilities are 28 times more likely to have sight loss than other children.听 But we believe that there鈥檚 over 40,000 children with learning disabilities in England who have never had an eye test.

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White

And I mean this is something that you鈥檝e been talking about before.听 I know we鈥檝e featured this on In Touch.听 So, has nothing happened to improve the situation?

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Hopkins

Well, we鈥檝e been doing research over the last four years in 11 different special schools, testing the sight of children and putting pressure on NHS England to do something about the inequality that exists, so that these children can get sight tests.听 But as yet nothing has happened.听 So, we鈥檙e asking NHS England to make wide reforms to community eye care for children and adults.

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White

Now presumably these are very difficult tests to carry out, as Alyson鈥檚 described, I mean you can鈥檛 always simply ask - what you would with other children听- what can you see.听 So, would you acknowledge that it is quite a challenging problem?

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Hopkins

It is a specialist skill to test the sight of somebody with a learning disability who doesn鈥檛 communicate in the same way as other children - absolutely - and that鈥檚 why part of what we鈥檙e asking for is for reforms in education, to the eyecare sector, as well as ensuring that people have the right environment to get their sight tested, which is why we鈥檙e asking for that work to be done in schools.

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White

So, is it as much as where the test is done as how it鈥檚 done?

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Hopkins

Absolutely, it鈥檚 about both - both issues.听 And what we argue and what our research has found in testing 1200 children with learning disabilities is that no child is too disabled to have their sight tested.

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White

And presumably the doctors and the optometrists who do this have to be flexible too, they can鈥檛 just do what they normally do?

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Hopkins

Absolutely and that鈥檚 why we鈥檙e asking NHS England to change the system because it鈥檚 the system that鈥檚 broken.听 Appointments are too short, high street opticians are just not conducive in their environment to be suitable for people with learning disabilities.

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White

What kind of eye conditions in particular are you saying that these children are risking through not having the tests?

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Hopkins

In our work we found that half of the children that we tested had a problem with their vision, a third of them needed glasses.听 We found - in some cases we鈥檝e saved the sight of children because we鈥檝e sent them to hospital to prevent them from avoidable sight loss.听 So, we鈥檙e finding all sorts of different problems in these children would have otherwise not been picked up, had it not for our team.

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White

Now you are critical of NHS England for the slowness of progress, what do you want them to do and why do you think they have been slow?

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Hopkins

I hope that it鈥檚 not because they鈥檙e not ambitious for the lives of people with learning disabilities.听 I hope that it鈥檚 not because they don鈥檛 think that people with learning disabilities have an equal right to sight.听 But what we鈥檙e asking them to do is to make wide reforms in community eyecare for children and adults with learning disabilities and introduce adjusted eye tests in special schools as a first step.

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White

And they鈥檝e told us that they鈥檙e working with you and the Department of Health and Social Care to look at how it can improve access to eye tests for adults and children with learning disabilities.听 And they say, looking at the steps that need to be taken, to provide a more consistent national service.听 So, that does suggest that they accept that it is inconsistent.

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Hopkins

We have seen more听recent action from them now that we鈥檙e launching this largest global study of eyecare for people with learning disabilities.听 But it鈥檚 not enough and it鈥檚 not moving fast enough.

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White

Let me just finally go back to Alyson because Alyson I think now Ellie has been having tests in school.听 What difference has that made?

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Farrell

Gosh it鈥檚 really hard to convey how much difference it鈥檚 made.听 So, now Ellie, rather than having a half day out of school in a place that she finds frightening and makes her anxious, she maybe has half hour out of her day in her school with a teacher with her, so somebody familiar with her, the people looking at her eyes are people she鈥檚 built up a relationship with now and if she鈥檚 having a bad five minutes they just hop on to the next child and come back to her later.听 She鈥檚 had her eye tested in the classroom while she鈥檚 doing other activities, rather than disturb her.听 So, it鈥檚 just immeasurable the difference that it鈥檚 made.

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White

Alyson Farrell, Lisa Hopkins - thank you both very much indeed.

We鈥檝e also been talking to the Scottish Government, they say that it鈥檚 working to implement the recommendations of a review.听 These include funding to support optometrists carrying out eye examinations on children with learning disabilities.听 And the Welsh government told us that it offers these children specialist units attached to mainstream, maintained special schools and independent schools.听 We鈥檝e also talked to the Health and Social Care Board and the Public Health Agency in Northern Ireland, they say they鈥檙e aware of the research and that they carry out many clinics in special schools, they also say they鈥檙e developing guidance to provide autism friendly environments in GPs and optometry practices.

And now to a possible solution to a perennial problem for blind parents - how to transfer your baby safely from A to B.听 Resourceful mums and dads with a visual impairment have tried various techniques over the years, they鈥檝e often told us about them.听 Some tow a pram or a pushchair behind them, often with the aid of a guide dog, though not always.听 And of course,there鈥檚 always the papoose method of having the baby on your back.听 But the conventional solution of pushing your pram in front of you raises obvious problems.听

Well now a visually impaired awareness trainer has taken her own solution along to the engineering department at Imperial College London and invited them to work on it for her.听 It鈥檚 a smart buggy, it uses a phone style camera to look ahead and send information to the hands of the pram pusher.听 Well, the prototype has been on display at the weekend and Hetal Bapodra and her husband,听Will,听went to road test it for In Touch.

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Bapodra

I am 32 and I have two small children - I have a听five-year-old听and a听21-month-old听- a little boy and a little girl.听 I have no sight, well no useful sight, I鈥檝e got light and dark perception.听 I am a confident cane and a guide dog user.听 I鈥檝e been pulling my buggy for the last five years - well that鈥檚 what it feels like - I think I might have had a couple of months break.听 But I have a bad back, so I struggle to carry my children, so I鈥檝e always had to rely on a buggy since they were tiny.

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Actuality

Baby noises. Call your doggy!

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Thoms

My name鈥檚 Will Thoms, father of two.听 Looking forward to seeing the smart buggy actually, I鈥檓 a bit of a nerd and I like anything smart, to be honest, anything that鈥檚 pushing forward accessibility for things we do in life.听 It鈥檚 good that people are looking to this sort of thing.

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Bapodra

The baby in the buggy at the moment is our little girl Nakita, so she is the one that would benefit the most from a smart buggy.听 So, at the moment we use a buggy called Bugaboo Chameleon听which means that the handle can flip, so the small wheels that move are behind us and we can pull it, it鈥檚 easier to pull that way.听 The options are very limited, it鈥檚 very difficult to pull a buggy that has the stationary wheels at the back.听 This buggy was invented with Romana Williams, who came up with the idea and approached Imperial College students to bring it to life.

Okay, so I鈥檓 feeling two fabric tabs, I feel like there鈥檚 little round circles where your fingers would be.听 Is that right?

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Williams

Yeah.

听

Bapodra

Yeah, okay, and they鈥檙e vibrating, ooh, okay.

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Williams

With the pushchair Hetal the vibrating motors you could feel with your thumbs are for the front, so if anything straight ahead of you.听 And when your hand鈥檚 folded underneath the pushchair that鈥檚 for the left or right.听 So, to pick up things on your left and right side.

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Bapodra

And does it pick up things like steps and鈥�

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Williams

So, we鈥檝e designed the app that you鈥檒l be able to have on your phone that will use the camera to pick up steps and curves and the braille bumps, so you know where they are and it will feed it back to you.

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Bapodra

So, is it something you鈥檇 have to buy a special smart buggy or could you put this on any - like you could buy a cute buggy and put it on any buggy?

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Williams

You could - our aim is to be able to attach it to any buggy.

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Bapodra

Okay.听 So,听the top ones are in front and the bottom ones are left to right, yeah?

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Williams

Yeah.

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Bapodra

Okay.听 Is that right?

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Williams

Yeah, then sometimes if I - so you notice that when you intensify to stop, so you might have to turn to the right.听 It鈥檚 intensifying?

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Bapodra

Yeah, yeah.

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Williams

So, you know something鈥檚 right there, so you could stop.

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Bapodra

Wow, so I feel like I鈥檇 have to do a lot of concentrating.

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Thoms

It鈥檚 really interesting, it gives us four - when you鈥檙e using it - four of the fingers have got different kind of vibrations coming through from the four different sensors.听 It feels quite organic and so it feels like you鈥檙e kind of feeling in front of you a little bit.听 It鈥檚 clearly, very, very early stages.听 It鈥檚 got potential.听 They鈥檝e used very inexpensive technology for this which is really promising because it means the final solution could be relatively cheap.听

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Gryparis听

So, I鈥檓 George听Gryparis, I鈥檓 a听second-year听student and I鈥檓 part of a 10 people group and we鈥檙e making this buggy.

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Bapodra

And what kind of technology are you using to make this happen?

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Gryparis

So, we鈥檙e using ultrasound sensors for the sides because they don鈥檛 have to be as accurate.听 And we鈥檙e using a laser听sensor, which is the same that they use in self-driving cars for the front, which is a laser.

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Bapodra

What happens if this stuff gets wet?

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Gryparis

We don鈥檛 really have water resistance in place but we think that it shouldn鈥檛 be hard to do.听 It wasn鈥檛 in the scope of our project, because we only had six months, but it should be fairly doable to use some kind of material that would insulate it.

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Bapodra

You鈥檝e got all this expensive equipment on display on a buggy that you might be taking to the park, you might have to leave outside a weigh-in clinic, will there be ways of hiding it?听 I鈥檝e come back from a weighing clinic and someone鈥檚 stolen my baby bag that has nappies and dirty clothes in.听 If I was relying on this and it got stolen that could be an issue couldn鈥檛 it?

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Gryparis

One of our future plans would be to make this an attachment to the buggy, so you鈥檇 have a front attachment with all the sensors and a back attachment with all the motors and if that was lightweight and small enough you could even take it with you, would be one way of dealing with it.

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White

George Gryparis, one of the students and before that we heard Hetal Bapodra and baby Niki putting the smart buggy through its paces.听 Well we also heard Ramona Williams and it鈥檚 her brainchild and she joinS听me now.

First of all, Ramona, how did you come up with this idea?

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Williams

I used to always babysit and look after my nieces and听nephews for my brothers and sister so I used to have to push the pushchair and I found it difficult because I used to fold my cane and put it on top of the handlebar, so people could still see that I鈥檓 visually impaired but I couldn鈥檛 control the buggy properly.

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White

And what kind of reactions did you used to find you got?

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Williams

Because I used to have my cane on top of the handlebar, so people used to see it, if I accidentally bumped into them they鈥檇 be like, okay, that鈥檚 fine or sometimes I鈥檒l even have people help me to put the buggy on the bus safely and to make sure I get off the bus safely.

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White

How did your idea of a smart buggy get from an idea to a prototype?

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Williams

So, it took a few years because I used to think about who I can approach.听 So, that was from I was 21 - because I鈥檓 34 - so last year I approached Imperial College where I spoke to them at an innovation day project.

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White

So, this is an idea which has been a long time in the making really for you?

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Williams

Yes, that鈥檚 correct.

听

White

Now you run a consultancy which advises companies about making their services friendly towards blind people, why have you gone that route and why have you had to go it alone?

听

Williams

It鈥檚 because I used to always apply for jobs in charities, the charity sector or the mainstream sector and I always used to get job interviews that I will have to do听20-minute听presentations and I will never get the job.听 So, I thought is it because they鈥檙e scared of employing somebody that has a disability?听 So, I decided in 2014, after my last job interview that I never got, I鈥檓 going to do something that I love.听 So,听for seven months I figured out what I can do, what I鈥檓 good at and then I came up with consultancy training for businesses and听public-sector听bodies and schools because I found that was a good way of doing awareness to let people in your community know that being blind or visually impaired doesn鈥檛 stop you from getting a job or being part of the community.

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White

Now blind people are often hearing about bright ideas, they hear them on this programme, to help them, which never see the light of day.听 How confident are you that this idea will actually make it on to the market?

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Williams

I鈥檓 very confident because now the students have designed this prototype because it鈥檚 also going to be useful for myself, so I will need one for when I settle down too.听 So, I鈥檓 going to be in talks with Imperial and look at how they can support me developing this further and I鈥檓 also going to be looking for different grants and different things out there, so we can do research听so other听visually impaired people听could test it out and give feedback so it could eventually go to market.

听

White

So, what did you feel about Hetal and Will鈥檚 reactions?

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Williams

I loved their reactions and it鈥檚 good to get everyone鈥檚 feedback because then you could redevelop something or add a component.听 The more feedback we have the better.

听

White

Ramona Williams, thank you very much indeed.

And that鈥檚 almost it for today but last week we introduced an item in honour of long time In Touch producer Cheryl Gabriel.听 Cheryl鈥檚 List - that鈥檚 what we called听it, a collection of tips for blind people contributed by guests and you鈥檝e already started to add to it as well, which is what we invited you to do.听 Listener Alyson May got in touch to say: 鈥淒on鈥檛 forget the registered blind are eligible for the Disabled Blue Parking Badge.鈥澨� And that of course gives you parking concessions.听 So, that鈥檚 just one thing.听 We鈥檇 like to hear more of your ideas.听 As always,听we welcome your views on anything you鈥檝e heard in today鈥檚 programme.听 You can call our actionline on 0800 044 044 for 24 hours after the programme.听 You can email听听and you can click on contact us on our website to get more information and download tonight鈥檚 and other editions of the programme.

From me, Peter White, producer Kevin Core and the team, goodbye.

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