Newsletter No. 364
A British Columbia woman, Gail Lane, regained her sight after a decade of blindness thanks to a rare “tooth-in-eye” surgery that implanted her tooth into her eye socket. Meanwhile, the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) warns that patients with sight loss still face major risks when health information isn’t provided in accessible formats, despite new NHS England standards. To push accessibility forward, RNIB is also hosting the 2025 Accessible Media Symposium, bringing together experts to shape the future of inclusive storytelling and media.
Can (and should) we cure blindness?
Recent years have seen incredible advances in eyesight restoration. But should we approach blindness as something that needs to be ‘cured’? Comedian Tom Skelton, who started losing his sight at 21, explores. Watch the video here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/videos/c4gd51ved5mo
On a similar note, the following BBC news item/video covers the life-changing gene therapy that can restore vision: https://www.bbc.co.uk/videos/cgm24knl8yjo
A decade after losing her sight, a British Columbia woman can see again - through her tooth
Carrying on the theme of medical developments…
Gail Lane, who was among Canada’s first round of tooth-in-eye surgery patients, calls it a success. After 10 years without sight, a Victoria, B.C., woman saw her partner’s face and her dog’s wagging tail this year for the very first time, thanks to a tooth surgically implanted into her eye socket.
Gail Lane, 75, was one of three Canadians to undergo the rare tooth-in-eye surgery, technically called osteo-odonto keratoprosthesis, in February. Lane lost her sight 10 years ago due to complications from an auto-immune disorder that caused scarring to her corneas. In the weeks that followed the complex two-part surgery, she gradually regained her ability to see.
Read this remarkable story here: https://www.cbc.ca/lite/story/1.7602011
Let us have our health information in a way we can read, say patients with sight loss
Blind and partially sighted people will continue to face serious risks to their safety because information received about their health isn’t accessible, unless the updated NHS England Accessible Information Standard is fully implemented, leading sight loss charity Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) has warned. When people with communications needs don’t receive their information in a way they can read, it leads to missed medical appointments, delayed test results, misunderstood treatment instructions and unread medication labels and letters from doctors. It creates serious risks to health and wellbeing, affecting patient safety, independence, privacy and dignity.
NHS England has just published an updated version of the Accessible Information Standard which sets out how NHS and publicly funded adult social care services must provide information and correspondence to people with communication needs, including blind and partially sighted people.
RNIB 2025 Media Accessibility Symposium | RNIB
RNIB’s Accessible Media Symposium brings together broadcasters, streamers, technology companies, creatives, researchers and people with lived experience to explore the future of accessible media. As storytelling, platforms and technologies evolve, so too must the ways we think about access. This two-day event is a chance to share ideas, highlight innovation, and shape what accessible media looks like in the years ahead.
See the line-up here for 16th and 17th September: https://www.rnib.org.uk/news/rnib-2025-media-accessibility-symposium/