The loss of vision does not necessarily have to stop you from doing your daily activities. There should only be a change in how these activities are being carried out. Is your eyesight giving your problems in doing specific activities like reading price tags and newspapers or in managing the glare? Thankfully, technology has the solution to the low vision problems.
Losing the vision or eyesight can bring a lot of changes in life. It also makes it essential for the person to learn the ways of doing things on their own. The independence can be maximized by making a few correct adjustments.
=> What is vision rehabilitation?
Vision rehabilitation is a treatment and education process that aims in helping the visually impaired people in successfully achieving maximum goals along with having a sense of well being, optimal lifestyle and a satisfaction of doing things with complete independence. By thorough evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment the functions can be maximized efficiently.
Blind or visually impaired adults are offered information and resources by the vision rehabilitators that could help them lead an independent as well as productive life. Adaptive techniques and specialized methods are provided so that it helps them in communicating and coping with the daily life challenges.
Who provides these services?
The help for the blind and low vision patients is provided by a bunch of trained and skilled professionals. It includes orientation and mobility specialists, vision rehabilitation therapists and low vision therapists.
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- Low vision therapists: Certified low vision therapists use the help of optical and non-optical devices along with assistive technology to instruct people in using their rest of the vision efficiently. It also determines the need for modifications in the environment like in the workplace, home or school.
- Vision rehabilitation therapists: The certified vision rehabilitation therapists enable the adults who have low vision or are blind in carrying out the daily activities by teaching them adaptive independent living skills. They go along with the patients to their workplace, home or rehabilitation centers and assist them.
- Orientation and mobility specialists: the certified orientation and mobility specialists help the people with low vision or blindness in traveling independently and safely in their community or home by teaching them about the concepts and the skills. It also includes the lessons of safe and independent indoor and outdoor travel skills. The lessons also include the use of long canes, public transportations, electronic travel devices, pre-cane skills, sighted guided and a human guide.
=> What can you learn from these rehabilitation lessons?
- Communications skills: The essential reading and writing skills are taught along with assistive computer technology and braille.
- Counselling: It aims at helping you along with your spouse, friends and family members in adjusting to your loss of vision.
- Personal management and independent lifestyle skills: This primarily involves the modifications at home, self-care, repairs at home, management of finances, using the phones and leisure and recreation activities.
- Travel skills and independent movement: The lessons help you move freely in and out of your house, in using the transportation, and in safely traveling outdoors with the help of a long cane or other available devices.
- Evaluations of low vision done with low vision devices: Everything that is required for making the best of the remaining vision is used. They include bioptics for driving, low vision examination, low vision non-optical and optical devices. Magnifiers, high-intensity lamps, special reading glasses, and telescopes are used.
- Vocational rehabilitation: It gets tough on getting back to work or looking for a work opportunity with low vision or blindness. Job training, job modification, vocational training and evaluation, restructuring along with the placement of job is done.
Is there an option of learning from home?
It entirely depends upon the length of the treatment that you require and the rehabilitation center that is providing you with the services.
Some agencies have the option of providing you with rehabilitation professionals that can help you while you are at you home and the best training program that meets your need can also be developed.
In some agencies, the training is done according to the agency base setting which will require your attendance daily.
Long term stay is required by some of the residential rehabilitation centers.
Lafayette Optometrist, Dr. Durocher, believes that despite the low vision or the blindness you can live your life independently and regain the control over it. If you are a patient, who needs help, consults your optometrist about your options today.
References:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vision_rehabilitation
- https://www.aao.org/eye-health/diseases/low-vision-aids-rehabilitation
- http://opmt.com/education/vision-rehab/
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