Quality, not quantity, of support can minimise loneliness in people with sight loss

Despite being more common among people with sight loss, loneliness is not inevitable, national charity the Thomas Pocklington Trust has found.

Looking into research on loneliness in people with sight loss, the charity found services offering high quality support are more effective than the quantity of help available to people.

The study, ‘Loneliness, Social Isolation and Sight Loss’ found people with sight loss may have a higher risk of experiencing social isolations or loneliness due to extra social barriers such as problems with transport, noise levels and poor lighting in public places.

Dr Suzanne Hodge, of the Division of Health Research at Lancaster University, who led the review, said: "This review shows that sight loss is just one factor in a complex mix of factors that can lead to loneliness and social isolation. Not all people with sight loss suffer from loneliness but more work is needed to fully understand the links between the different factors that seem to contribute to it."

The importance of peer support was highlighted by the study to enable people to share practical advice and coping strategies.

The Thomas Pocklington Trust is calling for more research to be carried out to find out whether there is a direct link between sight loss and increased loneliness.

Sarah Buchanan, research director of Thomas Pocklington Trust, said: "We hope to get more organisations, particularly those working with older people, to think about the impact sight loss has on people's ability to take part in and enjoy social activities.

“The more awareness there is of the possible impacts of sight loss, the more can be done to include people with vision impairments and ward off loneliness."

The national charity for people with sight loss also wants more attention to be paid to the functional difficulties faced by people with sight loss, after finding these kinds of problems can have as much of a negative impact on people’s wellbeing as loneliness.