An invisible disability: Communication, patient safety and dual sensory impairment in older persons

Nurses play a critical role in ensuring patient safety in health care settings, yet often fail to recognize a common but poorly recognized disability in older persons, dual sensory impairment (DSI).DSI significantly impacts health care communication, patient safety and quality of care and is invisible in health care narratives, policy and practice.Our role as health care professionals and researchers in the intersectional space of older age and disability combine advocacy, qualitative research and a drive to improve patient safety through better health care communication for those with DSI.Our work is embedded in the living realities of DSI, one author lives with DSI; their greatest fear is hospitalization.