Opinion pieces

Little more than a year ago, Colleen Ashby was clinging to life, with 14 machines keeping her alive following a heart transplant that robbed her of almost all of her vision. Today, she's weighing up all the opportunities that life with a new heart and low vision has presented as she trains for the Australian Transplant Games later this year.

Leading blindness and low vision service provider Vision Australia has urged Bundaberg residents living with vision loss to take every step possible to maximise government funding available to them. The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has been live in Bundaberg and the surrounding areas since November 2017. The scheme provides participants with packages to fund support services and Vision Australia wants to ensure people from the blind and low vision community are receiving adequate funding.

BAIRNSDALE'S Kayci Westwood is a sports star that lets nothing stand in her way. Kayci, 26, who has low vision, has learned to travel to Melbourne on her own with support from Vision Australia, using a long white cane to help her to navigate safely. She has nystagmus, a condition that causes rapid involuntary movements in her eyes, and is triggered by the abnormal function of the part of her brain that controls eye movement.

Recently, the Victorian Government released the Victorian economic participation plan for people with disability 2018-2020. Included in the plan is the commitment to develop a Victorian public service employment action plan that will include the first ever disability employment target of 6% by 2020, increasing to 12% by 2025.

One of Vision Australia's biggest annual fundraisers just got twice as big. The Vision Australia Bendigo Easter Egg Hunt, a much loved family event held in conjunction with the Bendigo Easter Festival for the past 15 years, is normally held on Good Friday.

Access to specialist blindness and low vision support services is set to be made easier for Toowoomba residents, with Vision Australia set to expand its presence in the region.

The Illawarra's blind and low vision community is set to be better supported, with Vision Australia increasing its presence in the region.

Children who are blind or have low vision can face challenges when it comes to developing communication and other social skills alongside their peers, which makes the work of Vision Australia's paediatric service providers extremely important.

Vision Australia is best known for its services to the blind and low vision community, but its access appraisal team is available to help to design and construct buildings that are accessible to people with disabilities of all kinds.

Ba Huynh Pham's vision loss ended his career as a dentist, but with support from Vision Australia, he's channelling his energy and creativity into his family and community.