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PIP Descriptor "Sensory Impairment"

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7 years 1 month ago #182754 by Maureen
PIP Descriptor "Sensory Impairment" was created by Maureen
My husband, Martyn, has been awarded DLA for 9 years, with the highest rate for mobility. We are now at the point of going to appeal as the transfer from DLA to PIP has resulted in our case manager deciding my husband's cognitive ability to 'plan and follow a journey' is such that he has now only been awarded the standard rate for mobility.
Martyn is an insulin dependent diabetic with a chronic form of every diabetic complication possible, he also had a kidney transplant in 2005, due to total renal failure and he was in haemodialysis for 4 years before the transplant. His health is in a very poor state, with him being unable to walk less than 20mtrs without pain, dizziness and support. We had a home visit from the health professional to assess Martyn, initially and at the time Martyn didn't move from his armchair for the duration of the visit, however, the case manager "decided Martyn could walk 20mtrs but not more than 50mtrs". How on earth did they come to this decision, when they never saw him move from his chair.
On top of this and this is the main point of his appeal, due to diabetic retinopathy and the number of times he has had laser treatment for this condition (he has also recently had two cataracts removed), he has now been diagnosed with photophobia, eyes that cannot bear any bright light/sunlight to his eyes - it doesn't have to strong, even a light cloudy day gives him so much pain. Obviously, Martyn doesn't drive anymore and can only go out when I, his wife and carer, or another member of our family take him in the car but during a journey, he travels with his eyes closed 90% of the time, to ease the pain in his eyes. If we drive at night, he has to sit with his eyes closed all the time as the oncoming headlights cause so much pain.
PIP Mobility activities descriptor F describes peoples ability to follow a journey, stating "This descriptor is most likely to apply to claimants with cognitive, sensory or developmental impairments, who cannot, due to their impairment, work out where to go, follow directions or deal with unexpected changes in their journey, even when their journey is familiar".
When I questioned Martyn's case manager about this descriptor and why he didn't feel this applied to Martyn, he said that "sensory impairment" was meant for blind people! So, apologies for the long introduction, why doesn't the descriptor state "blindness" rather than "sensory impairment" and if Martyn has to travel with his eyes closed for most of every car journey, doesn't this render him temporarily blind?
Can anyone give me some advice regarding this as the appeal needs to be in next week?
Maureen

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7 years 1 month ago #182779 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic PIP Descriptor "Sensory Impairment"
M

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The assessor is stating an opinion based on the experience of assessing other claimants (I am not trying to make a joke), this can be difficult to argue against. I would certainly make the point that he was not observed to have walked, but I would go back to his PIP2, the assessment report and the PIP Claim guide to make sure that you have shown that his walking is restricted to no more than 20m, if relevant make use of the terms defined under "reliably" and remember that he needs to be restricted on the majority of days.

He is not required to perform any PIP activity without pain, but any pain, exhaustion or breathlessness that limits his ability to complete and activity should be taken into account.

If he is in severe pain while walking then you may be able to argue that any walking he does is not to a necessary standard.

The legal requirement is "Cannot follow the route of an journey without another person, assistance dog or orientation aid" which makes no mention as to what would be an acceptable sensory problem. However, the task is defined as being about the claimant navigating the route, so any arguments that you make must be in respect to this.

Has an ophthalmologist made any statements about your husbands vision? I would think that you need independent medical evidence of the limitations he now suffers.

Gordon

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7 years 3 weeks ago #183092 by Maureen
Replied by Maureen on topic PIP Descriptor "Sensory Impairment"
Hi Gordon

Thank you for your reply and advice. Martyn's GP's have written to the DWP twice, confirming his diagnosis of photophobia but this has obviously made no difference to their decision. I fail to see how he can navigate a journey with his eyes closed and he does need someone to be with him EVERY time he goes out.
Would the new Government white paper make any difference to his claim?
Maureen

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7 years 3 weeks ago #183136 by Gordon
Replied by Gordon on topic PIP Descriptor "Sensory Impairment"

Maureen wrote: Hi Gordon

Thank you for your reply and advice. Martyn's GP's have written to the DWP twice, confirming his diagnosis of photophobia but this has obviously made no difference to their decision. I fail to see how he can navigate a journey with his eyes closed and he does need someone to be with him EVERY time he goes out.
Would the new Government white paper make any difference to his claim?
Maureen


I would use your example of navigating with his eyes closed, it is a good one.

No, a white paper would not be relevant.

Gordon

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems

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7 years 3 weeks ago #183758 by Bertie1958
Replied by Bertie1958 on topic PIP Descriptor "Sensory Impairment"
if you tell them he close his eyes or stays in darken rooms they wont take you serious To relieve the symptoms of photophobia you need to block the light. Some people block the light by pulling the blinds in their homes or wearing sunglasses indoors. Don’t do this. You may be “dark-adapting” your eyes, making them even more light sensitive when you leave your home (think of leaving a dark movie theater and then going outside to bright sunlight in the middle of the day).

What’s needed are photophobia glasses that primarily block the light responsible for photophobia while allowing the remaining light to pass through.
any ophthalmologist you ask for a report will tell you that

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