8- Getting round safely

This activity is about problems with navigating in familiarand unfamiliar places because of visual impairment. a) Unable to navigate around familiar surroundings without being avccompanied by another person due to sensory impairment(15 points)
b) Cannot safely complete a potentially hazadous task such ascrossing a road without being accompanied by another person(15 points)
My ESA may be dependant on how i approach this descriptor and would like some guidance
to ensurei my comprehension is accurate.
Briefly i suffer from a eye condition called Keraticonous which has left me with no vision in one eye
and limited vision in other eye with the aid of a specialised contact lens suitable for wear around 6 hours a day( as advised by my lens practioner).Without the lens i am effectively without no vision in the secondeye as well. For me to recognise a face it needs to be 12in in front of me. Hence for 18 hoursa day i am nerly totally visually impaired.
I not iif you wear contact lens or glasses you will be assessed as when wearing them and conditions are bright electric light or daylight.Further even with lens ov my vision suffers by as much as 75% in darkness or badly lit areas hence i dont venture out unaccompanied at such times.
To questions i will answer it varies and provide explanation.
Will i be eligible for 15 point descriptors.
I cannot use guide dogs for perfectly acceptable reasons and guide can presents difficulties because of my poor mobility.
My second query concerns exemption on exceptional circumstances. I am Hepatatis B+ve and so i cannot donate blood. Also when i am in hospital i have to be kept in a isolation room with special precautions being taken by staff attending me. T^hey need to wear hats, face masksand protective clothing to prevent them from contact with my blood. Similar arguement can be applied to workplace.
Am i exempt?
Regards
Patel
Your ability will be based on whether you can manage most of the time.

Had a eye test today. My VA is 6/60 and there is loss in visual fields as well.VA is bad but not bad enough to qualify as registered blind however optician confirmed it is severely impaired. Any way
my main question remains the vision is limited to 6 hours a day as that is my contact lens wearing time permitted.. Other 18 hours I am technically blind. During these hours and in darkness, badly lit areas
I am unable to carry out descriptors (a +b). therefore I am unable to carry out activity majority of time,
as and when I want and safely. Does my argument stand?
Mental Health Descriptors Awarness of hazards, coping with changes, going out have studied them very carefully. If I consider my "visual difficulties" I score very highly and meet support group criteria. Without my visual abilities consideration I score nothing. What do I do, can I use visual problems or not.
Secondly medical assessment daily living awareness of hazards mentions activities related to driving,
road safety awareness. Are these not visual related. Please help me.
Kind Regards
Patel

My vision is 6/60 with the contact lens . Without the contact lens I have practically
no vision. A face needs to be within 12in of me to recognise it ( technically blind for all intense
and purposes) for 18 hours.
On the mental issues I suffer from clinical depression as well. However visual plays major part.
I can concentrate on depression ,moodswings, and lack of concentration. Should I mention visual
as secondary or leave it out altogether?
Another question is related to medication and its side effects ( mental). I take (30) tablets a day for various conditions heart, hypertension, immuno-suppressents, diabetes, and my pharmacist confirms I am the highest consumer. My concern is medication doesn't fall under
a) mental health disorders
b) learning difficulties
c)psycotic disorders
d) severe anxiety.
I do not have any other mental difficulty besides depression. How do I link side effect of medecines
to mental descriptors?
Regards
Patel

Patel, the Royal National Institute For The Blind and Action For Blind People can help visually impaired people with their benefits.

For ESA your eye sight with the contact lenses in your eye will be taken into account, you may not score any points for when you don't wear a contact lens. Your sight will be check in good lighting, not poor lighting. So, any problems you have in poor lighting may not be taken into account.

You need to think about what problems you have with mobility with the contact lens in your eye, like do you bump into people because of your field vision? Do you knock things over because of problems seeing the depth and distant of things? Do you have problems with glare? Do you see things in focus? With a contact lens in your eye can you cross a road safely? Is your eye condition degenerative? How stable is your eye condition? Are you under a Cornea Specialist at the hospital?

Mental Health Descriptors Awareness of hazards isn't for visually impaired people so you won't score any points there.

I have similar problems to you, my vision is 3/60 and I'm blind in one eye. My sight is a lot worse at night, but my night vision won't be taken into account by ATOS.