New England Eye Institute Hosts First Annual Elder's Right to Sight Consensus Conference; Boston's Experts Come Together to Improve Elderly Care.

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers

Right to Sight Consensus Conference

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 14, 2004

For the first time ever, leaders from Boston's medical community came together to evaluate the situation of elderly care, in the hopes of developing a new model for helping visually impaired residents in the state of Massachusetts. New England Eye Institute and MAB Community Services today hosted the Elder's Right to Sight Consensus Conference in Brookline. The purpose of the conference today was to discuss New England Eye's various outreach initiatives and programs with the objective of reaching a consensus among the various community service agencies and health care organizations about reforms to current models of eye care delivery to seniors in the Greater Boston area.

Today, there are an estimated 73,370 elders with serious sight loss who are not eligible for services from the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind because they are not legally blind. Add to this figure the fact that elders are currently one of the fastest-growing and most vulnerable populations - with four of five major causes of blindness being directly related to the aging process - and the cause for alarm is clear. Consider the following statistics unveiled during today's conference: older adults with vision impairments were more likely to report additional medical and health difficulties, including:

-- Difficulty walking (43.3% versus 20.2%),

-- Difficulty getting outside (28.6% versus 10.4%),

-- Difficulty getting into and out of a bed or chair (22.1%

versus 9.3%),

-- Difficulty managing medication (11.8% versus 4.4%),

-- Difficulty preparing meals (18.7% versus 6.7%),

-- Falls during the preceding 12 months (31.2% versus 19.2%),

Vision-impaired elders were also more likely to report associated medical problems, including:

-- Broken hip (7.1% versus 4.2%),

-- Hypertension (53.7% versus 43.1),

-- Heart disease (30.2% versus 19.7%),

-- Stroke (17.4% versus 7.3%),

-- Depression or anxiety (13.3% versus 7.0%)

Attendees of today's conference included:, MAB Community Services, New England Eye Institute, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, Kit Clark Senior Services and BMC Geriatrics Service, New England College of Optometry, Hebrew Rehabilitation Center for the Aged, and Massachusetts Commission for the Blind.

Presiding over the activities is Seth Goldsmith, Sc.D., J.D., Professor Emeritus of Health Policy and Management at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Goldsmith is also a renowned author on the topic of elderly care, having published works including Choosing a Nursing Home, Essentials of Long-Term Care Administration, Health Care Management: A Contemporary Perspective and Managed Care, among others.

"It's about time we held such a conference to debate the important issue of senior care," said Seth Goldsmith, professor and author, and conference facilitator. "For too long, loss of vision has been associated with getting older, and not enough resources were put to task to alleviate the situation. Today, we are proud to put an end to the cycle, and begin the process of reforming the system."

About New England Eye

New England Eye Institute is a network of eye care centers and programs that reach out to the community with tailored programs for diverse populations. The teaching affiliate of the New England College of Optometry, New England Eye offers specialized services for whole-person, comprehensive eye care through its ongoing collaboration with area health professionals. Delivering excellent eye care for all, with distinctive programs for children, the elderly and the homeless, New England Eye is playing a leading role in the Healthy People/Healthy Vision 2010 national health agenda.

About MAB Community Services

Founded in 1903, MAB Community Services (formerly Massachusetts Association for the Blind) is the oldest social service organization in the United States to continuously provide programs for individuals who are blind or visually impaired. During the course of a century, MAB has broadened its scope of services to include programs for adolescents with acquired brain injuries and adults with mental retardation. Today, MAB helps more than 5,000 individuals gain the skills and spirit of independent living through programs that focus on rehabilitation, education, capacity building and access.

MAB's programs are designed to help people live fully and meaningfully in the community.