Vision Rehabilitation Week
Vision Rehabilitation Week is commemorated this year the week of June 9-15 according to Vision Serve Alliance. In the U.S. nearly 20 million people live with low vision, a vision impairment, or blindness, and the challenges this can cause in everyday activities. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, “Provision of, or referral to, vision rehabilitation is now the standard of care for all who experience vision loss.”
Despite this proclamation, all too often clients and patients with a vision loss, leave the doctor’s office, hearing that nothing more can be done for their reduced vision. Jason Eckert, COO, Vision Serve Alliance explained, “This holiday also highlights Vision Rehabilitation as a vital component in the continuum of care, recognizes the skilled professionals working in the field, and celebrates a career working with people of all ages with vision loss.”
Vision Rehabilitation is learning the adapted skills needed to perform everyday tasks with less vision, or no vision. Thid includes activities at work, school, recreation, and daily living, like reading, travel, technology, and personal management.
Often, the journey to Vision Rehabilitation begins outside the doctor’s office, in social services, like a state or community agency, like Vocational Rehabilitation, Unit on Aging, or a local non-profit providing services for clients with a vision loss. To locate these rehabilitation agencies in your state use the APH Connect Center’s Directory of Service or call them at 800-232-5463. In many states, vision rehabilitation services through these agencies are available at no cost, or on a sliding scale.
Some of the professionals providing vision rehabilitation services include:
- Teachers of the Visually Impaired (TVI): teachers who often work in schools with children aged 18 years old and younger.
- Vision Rehabilitation Therapists (VRT): professionals who work with clients of any age on a wide range of adapted daily living skills, which may include braille.
- Orientation and Mobility Specialists (O&M): provide training with outdoor, independent travel, such as using a white cane, or guide dog.
- Assistive Technology Specialist: provides a higher level of training on technology devices designed for accessibility, like computer screen readers, video magnifiers, smartphones, etc.
Note: each of these professionals offers a national certification in addition to the academic training for the profession. For a more in-depth look at the various vision rehabilitation professionals, see ASA Generations article, “Vision Rehabilitation Professionals Make the Difference.”
One-on-one vision rehabilitation training with a nationally certified professional is a great way to get started learning new skills, but not always possible in every situation. Alternatively, self-paced workshops on daily living skills, technology, and braille, are available at no cost, through Hadley (800-323-4238). Workshops are available online from their website, or in large print, braille, or as audio recordings on National Library Service Talking Book cartridges.
No matter how the journey starts, Vision Rehabilitation Week is a great opportunity to reach out and explore the many options available to develop new skills to make a vision loss less of an obstacle with our everyday activities.
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