A Jersey woman with a sight impairment has explained how she regained her freedom and confidence thanks to her white cane.
Olwyn Ruellan told Express that she used to “stay home a lot and rely on others”, but added that getting a white cane had “given me the confidence to go out regularly”.
“I can use this to find where the lumps, bumps and potholes are on the road, and everyone around me knows I have sight problems, and that I am not just in their way.”
Olwyn explained also that she is able to take her dog out on walks using her white cane, and it helps others to identify that she can get around independently despite her visual impairment.
She shared her experience this week as charity EYECAN marked White Cane Awareness Day on Wednesday.
The day saw the sight-loss and impairment charity stationed on Brook Street for three hours to share information with the public, and various cane-users participated in a march to raise awareness of white canes and their significance.
Volunteers were also on-hand to explain the type of tailored support they can offer to those in the community who need the device.
It comes after EYECAN developed a partnership with the Guernsey Blind Association and Sight Matters in the Isle of Man to secure the services of an accredited trainer to deliver bespoke white cane training for island communities.
Previously, there was only one Jersey-based rehabilitation officer qualified to deliver such training – but, thanks to close work with James Aylett of Provision Solutions, five new staff members have now been trained to deliver orientation and mobility training to individuals with sight loss across the islands.
EYECAN CEO Mark Coxshall said: “All three sight loss charities already work
well together, but this training has really developed joint working to the next level,
reflecting just how much each charity can learn from and support each other.”