Sensory problems are common experiences with the older generations of the United States population today (Crews & Campbell, 2004, p. 823, Vol. 94 No. 5). Surprisingly, 18% of people report blindness in one or both eyes or other eye impairments (Crews & Campbell, 2004, p. 823, Vol. 94 No. 5). Two-thirds of these low vision patients are 65 years of age (National Institutes of Health, 2000). There are many reasons why a person may suffer from vision loss. Low vision is one of the ten most prevalent causes of disability (M. Markowitz, R. E. Markowitz, S. N. Markowitz, 2009). When vision is diminished this can be associated with decreases in activities of daily living or leisure activities (Crews & Campbell, 2004, p. 823, Vol. 94 No. 5). In this paper a better understanding of low vision, problems that may occur and what measures that are taken to help improve a patient’s quality of life will be discussed.
The United States Department of Health and Human Services defines low vision (LV) as a clinically defined aspect of eye care. Low vision is a permanent loss of vision and cannot be improved with eyeglasses, medicine, or surgery (Eye Smart, 2014). Eye Smart states that if a patient has been diagnosed with low vision, no treatment will give the patient back their vision. However, the patient will need to learn new ways to use the vision that is left for activities of daily living and to maintain the quality of life (Eye Smart, 2014). Because individuals experience blindness so often they are usually overlooked or dismissed (Crews & Campbell, 2004, p. 823, Vol. 94 No. 5). According to Crews and Campbell vision problems are not manifested disabilities, and can lead to misdiagnosis and misunderstanding. Because of this mis...
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... occupations (Smith, Ludwig, Anderson, & Copolillo, 2009, p. 129). The participants portrayed a sense of pride and fulfillment when they were able to perform activities they needed and wanted to do (Smith, Ludwig, Anderson, & Copolillo, 2009, p. 121). This included daily living activities, Leisure, and socializing. In Ontario, Canada a study was performed by M. Markowitz, R. E. Markowitz, and S. N. Markowitz that showed that changes in the environmental setting could help improve the patient’s engagement in occupation due to their visual impairments. In a study done by Smallfield and Lou (2006) they concluded that limited research was available concerning the impact of low vision rehabilitation on the quality of life, and that there were mixed results concerning the benefit to low vision rehabilitation in addition to eye care professional intervention alone.
For future practice in social work, I learned that it is important to empower your clients to set goals and help push them to reach those goals. Robert wanted to plays sports and kept trying until he found a sport that was the best fit for him. Snow (2013a) talked about “the ‘problem’ of disability is not within the person, but within the social attitudes, and our attitudes shape the world we live in” (p.119). I agree with Snow, if our attitudes in society don’t change about “disabilities” the person will never feel completely welcomed or “fit” for
Optometrists have accepted vision therapy, which is a medical treatment for optical muscle disabilities, as a feasible treatment used for eye related problems; claiming the treatment can strengthen vision and give the patient the opportunity to understand visuals quicker and clearer (Press). Vision therapy originated in the 1950s and over the past 25 years, has gained popularity, mainly because of new technological innovations in the field of treatment. Generally, vision therapy is prescribed as a measure mainly for people between the ages of 3 and 18. With the results from a comprehensive series of eye tests, the optometrist can work with the patient using special instruments—prisms, filters, occluders, and eye lenses—and strengthen the eye muscles, thus improving sight. According to optometrists in favor of vision therapy, these methods of treatment using these instruments function as safer routes to repair eye disabilities. Although vision therapy can yield favorable results, the practice as a treatment for innate eye disabilities has been in hot debate lately; as it can exceed $8000 and insurance companies do not cover the treatment. For decades, insurance companies have refused to accept vision therapy as a legitimate method for repairing eyesight (Boink). Concomitant with lack of insurance, the cost for a full treatment can exceed $8000, and doctors cannot guarantee a successful outcome. Recently, parents of children with eye related disabilities, such as amblyopia (lazy eye) and strabismus (cross-eye), and doctors have attempted to cooperate with public schools to allow families access to school-funded doctors to practice vision therapy. With a tight budget, most schools cannot afford to supply vision therapy, and a...
Occupational Therapists perceive people, without discrimination, as active and creative “occupational beings” who crave engagement in activities of daily living, sequentially to maintain not merely their health but their wellbeing (COT, 2010). Occupation is a channel which directs people to better social inclusion, which in turn can result in dignity, independence, and social contribution (Waddell and Aylward, 2005) and one of the core foundations of Occupational Therapy is the necessity and value of occupations and re-engagement in occupation as an essential intervention (Ross, 2007a). Occupational Therapists who work with adults with different severities of learning disabilities experience difficulty with their everyday occupations, or activities of daily living (ADLs) and have both a clinical and a consultancy role (Lillywhite and Haines, 2010). People with a learning disability are a diverse group, and the severity of their condition can inhibit their abilities and independence (Cumella, 2013). But, how can Occupational Therapists use their professional skills to help those adults with a learning disability? How can these healthcare professionals promote their independence at home? This piece will look at the contribution of an Occupational Therapist giving an adult with a learning disability as much independence in their own locality.
Understanding of Children with Congenital Profound Visual Impairment." British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 22.1 (2004): 1-17.
Rossetti, Y., Rode, G., Pisella, L., Farne, A., Li, L., Boisson, D., & Perenin, M.-T. (1998). Prism adaptation to rightward optical deviation rehabilitates left hemispatial neglect. Nature, 166-168. pp. 166-168.
My father made a successful recovery and I became inspired. I realized that having the gift of sight is something people take for granted. Therefore, when I embarked on my undergraduate journey, I partook in several activities to help foster my thirst for knowledge about optometry. For instance, I became the treasurer of the pre-optometry club at the University of Florida. As an executive board member, I opened doors for others to find their passion for optometry through managing our budget and finances to sponsor trips and activities. Meanwhile, I also worked as a secretary and shadowed at the Eye Associates of Orlando, where I gained practical knowledge. I also volunteered for the KidSight Vision Screening Program where I entered data of visio...
Townsend, E.A. & Polatajko, H. J. (2007) Enabling Occupation II: Advancing an Occupational Therapy Vision for Health, Well-being & Justice through Occupation. Ottawa, ON: CAOT Publications ACE.
Adaptation to unpredictable conditions is a key force in driving human evolution. The ability to overcome predicaments with poise is one of the greatest assets humans possess. In “The Mind’s Eye”, Oliver Sacks recounts various perspectives of individuals coping with blindness. Each individual took a different path to becoming accustomed to their blindness and each of the case studies showed compensatory mechanism unique to the individual. Throughout the article, Sacks credits each person for playing to their assets because he views adaptability as a person’s capacity to alter their mode of thought in order to fit their circumstance. Although Sacks shows many examples of neuronal plasticity as an adaptation to blindness, he eludes to the impact
Proprioception can be described as the mind's awareness of the body. Proprioception provides the central nervous system unconscious information about the body (Bluestone, 1992). The "awareness" of our body may be difficult to understand until we have lost our proprioceptive sense. Researchers concerned with proprioception have usually directed their studies toward identifying in what processes proprioception plays a major role, and what processes may be hindered if proprioception loss is severe. Unfortunately, not much is known about proprioception, or how much proprioception contributes to functional accuracy (Gordon, Ghilhardi, & Ghez, 1995).
The statement “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” seems like a ludicrous cliché that everyone says too often. Usually when people go through terrible times in their lives all they can see is the negative effect. The journey sucks and usually no one commends it for the newfound strength gained from it. It’s like walking through a rose garden. During the walk, all you can feel are the pricks of the rose thorns impaling themselves in your skin. The experience is horrible and quite excruciating. But after coming out of the rose garden, all you can see when you turn back are the roses. As silly as this statement might sound, this statement carries a good source of moral truths that many of us should
During the clinical evaluation of patients with mild to moderate dementia of the AD type, visual difficulties such as : topographic agnosia, visual agnosia, alexia without agraphia, and prosopagnosia are detected. AD patients have The problem of describing the individual components of a picture is consistent with the severity of cytochrome oxidase (C.O.) deficits in the association cortical areas. Other deficits experienced by AD patients were texture discrimination, blue-violet discrimination, and 4.72 deg/sec motion detection. When AD patients were compared to other age-matched controls, AD patients had shown specific deficits in contrast sensitivity. Deficits in color vision were only age-related (M. Wong-Riley, et al. , 1997).
Robert, a 65 year-old male, has trouble reading fine detail, especially out of his central vision. He complains that his vision is blurred and that it is harder to see while operating a motor vehicle. In addition, sometimes objects appear wavy or crooked, which impairs his vision. His worst symptoms were that he occasionally lost the ability to distinguish between the features of familiar faces and he had a localized blind spot. Robert is not alone; many people suffer from symptoms related to loss and distortion of the visual field. He suffers from macular degeneration, the leading cause of decreased vision loss in the United States, especially for people over the age of 50 (Philippi, 2000).
Heiting, Gary, and Mark Mattison-Shupnick. " Bifocals and Trifocals for Vision Over 40. " All About The Vision.
Blindness can be so much more than the state of being unable to see (Dictionary.com). Both the 2008 movie Blindness, directed by Fernando Meirelles and based on a novel by José Saramago, and the short story The Country of the Blind written by H. G. Wells in 1904, put blindness at the center of the plot. What can blindness mean in our society? And what can blindness mean regarding my future profession in design? In the movie Blindness, to be blind leads to losing all that’s civilized; in H. G. Wells’ The Country of the Blind, blindness can be interpreted as a symbol for ignorance; finally, in graphic design, blindness could be to only focus on the aesthetic part of designing and forgetting the practical aspect of the design.