The impact of health policy gaps on low vision services in Canada

This study was a demonstration project of the Canadian government's VOICE in Health Policy initiative, funded through the Sectoral Involvement in Departmental Policy Development (SIDPD) component of the Voluntary Sector Initiative (VSI). VSI was launched in 2000 to strengthen the voluntary sector's participation in policy development. The CNIB's project was selected as one of six VOICE demonstration projects. Based on the findings of the literature review and policy scan, a pilot study was undertaken to explore the issues from the perspectives of seniors and vision service providers including ophthalmologists, optometrists, opticians and vision rehabilitation practitioners. It was hoped that the study could create a foundation for future research in order to much more extensively explore and document the issues in this area.