Debunking Sight Loss Myths – Part six – Did you know?

A small blue tile which reads NCBI Working for people with sight loss. Debunking Sight Loss Myths.

Did you know there are nearly 55,000 people who are blind or vision impaired in Ireland? When that figure is first presented to people, usually the automatic assumption is that the majority of those 55,000 people are blind, but that is not the case. Of the 55,000 people in Ireland who are blind or vision impaired, just 5% or approximately 2,750 of those are blind.

A female NCBI service user who is wearing glasses is holding a sign which reads not all disabilities are visible. In the top left corner of the image a text box also reads Did you know there are over 55,000 people who are blind or vision impaired in Ireland? Less than 5% of these are blind.

This means that approximately 52,250 people across the country have a form of vision impairment or are affected by sight loss in some way. As discussed before in part five of our Debunking Sight Loss Myths campaign, the impact of vision impairment varies from person to person. Some people may be able to continue their lives as normal with their residual vision, while other people will require training, support and more to adapt to losing significant aspects of their vision.

It could also be mistaken that NCBI only works with, and provides services for, people who are blind, but that is not the case. NCBI works with thousands of people who have different types of vision impairments or sight loss. Regardless of where you are on the sight loss spectrum, NCBI is available to provide tailored advice, support and services to anybody who requires assistance. There are dozens of ways in which NCBI can support you or someone you know who may be at the start of a sight loss diagnosis or someone who has had low vision or who is blind from birth. If you would like more information about what NCBI can offer you, please contact our info line on 1800 911 250.

The number of people who are blind or vision impaired in Ireland was estimated through data gathered in Census 2016. Although this is an official figure, it is thought, based on the growing number of people who are availing of what NCBI has to offer, that there are many more people who are blind or vision impaired in Ireland than current estimates suggest. It is hoped that when data is released from Census 2022, we will have a more up-to-date and more accurate number of people who are blind or vision impaired across Ireland.