UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Hello to you all,

I am a newbie, signed on yesterday for the first time- thanks for replying with your thoughts. comments and support.
As I said yesterday Intacs and Cross Linking seem to be the next option for me to consider. However I have a few questions rattling around my head...and I'm sure there will be more to ask as time goes by......

Of those of you who have had intacs I would like to ask how long you were off work, unable to drive etc and are you now able to wear lenses - soft or hard.

My employer is not supportive nor understanding of KC ( not a very nice employer at all ) and I am considering alternative employment but would like to know more about what to expect after intacs before I decide to change jobs.....dont think it would go down well with a new employer if I was to be off for a few months in the first year of employment.

alison falshaw wrote:Hello to you all,

My employer is not supportive nor understanding of KC ( not a very nice employer at all ) and I am considering alternative employment but would like to know more about what to expect after intacs before I decide to change jobs.....dont think it would go down well with a new employer if I was to be off for a few months in the first year of employment.

Alison

Others will answer your questions about intacs, I am generations too old for this therapy to have been an option for me, but I am still young enough to be angered by employers who do not treat disabled employees as they ought.

You have our sympathy, and if you want to do something about it, and the employers leaflet does not provide the response you are due, then you may find that the campaigning arm of the RNIB is of help.

We did have a consultant ophthalmologist come to the Scottish Group when he was looking at an early pilot of the INTACS procedure. He did not anticipate any time off work; operation one day, back to work the next. I am not sure that this optimism was entirely borne out by experience, but so far as I know you would not normally be looking at 'months' or even 'weeks' off work.

All the best

Andrew

ps Karl has posted his INTACS experiences Karl and so has Ed Ed

alison falshaw wrote:Hello to you all,

I am a newbie, signed on yesterday for the first time- thanks for replying with your thoughts. comments and support.
As I said yesterday Intacs and Cross Linking seem to be the next option for me to consider. However I have a few questions rattling around my head...and I'm sure there will be more to ask as time goes by......

Hi Alison, you feel free to ask as much as you need to. We were all noobs at one time or the other.

Of those of you who have had intacs I would like to ask how long you were off work, unable to drive etc and are you now able to wear lenses - soft or hard.

In total, and including the time off after being sacked for having KC (more of that later), I was away from employment for over 18 months. From having intacs done to being able to drive was 2 months. The time period will all depend on how quickly you recover from the procedure, for some here their recovery period has been a lot longer than mine.

My employer is not supportive nor understanding of KC ( not a very nice employer at all ) and I am considering alternative employment but would like to know more about what to expect after intacs before I decide to change jobs.....dont think it would go down well with a new employer if I was to be off for a few months in the first year of employment.

I know that feeling all too well.... However your KC should, presuming you are a resident of the UK, come under the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) - the definitive answer can only be given by a judge. This then makes it illegal for you current employer to directly or indirectly discriminate against you just because of your KC. This was the case with my last employer who had both caused both direct and indirect discrimination, and committed an act of unfair dismissal because of the discrimination. As a result this employer was taken to an Employment Tribunal and subsequently settled out of court. My current employer is not much better though

It may well be worth your while giving your employer a copy of the Keratoconus At Work factsheet, this can be downloaded here, as well as politely reminding them that you are covered by the DDA. You certainly won't be the last member to have problems with their employer.

Hoping this helps, feel free to give me a shout.

Karl