Alliance responds on elderly care

The Eye Health Alliance has expressed disappointment at the latest Department of Health report, A recipe for care - Not a single ingredient, by national director for older people Professor Ian Philp.

Philp discussed the importance of reconfiguring specialist services to bring care closer to home in the report, which stated: 'I see early intervention and assessment being applied to a range of conditions such as dementia, continence, vision, hearing, food care and oral health problems.'

However, Heather Marshall, Eye Health Alliance public affairs adviser, responded: 'Although the report acknowledges the need for eye tests, if falls are being caused by poor eyesight, the importance of good vision in preventing falls in the first place is still not adequately being addressed.