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Vision Rehabilitation Resources

For your patients with a visual impairment, it can be hard to do everyday activities like driving or reading. Millions of people in the United States are living with a visual impairment, and their condition can’t be fixed with glasses, contacts, or other standard treatments like medicine or surgery.

The good news is that you can help people with a visual impairment get vision rehabilitation services. Vision rehabilitation can help people with any type of visual impairment make the most of the vision they have and improve their quality of life.

elderly Indian woman with glasses

Vision rehabilitation at a glance

  • Includes a range of services and many levels of support
  • Can help people with a visual impairment maintain their independence and improve their quality of life
  • May involve a team of providers — including eye care professionals, low vision and vision rehabilitation therapists, orientation and mobility specialists, counselors, and social workers 

Getting diagnosed with an eye disease or condition that causes a visual impairment can be overwhelming — and people may not know where to start when it comes to accessing vision rehabilitation services. That’s why it’s important to share information about vision rehabilitation services and how to access them.

Link to Vision Rehabilitation Services

Health care providers play an important role in helping people with a visual impairment get vision rehabilitation services. You can follow these 3 steps to link your patients to the vision rehabilitation services that are right for them.

Step 1: Identify your network of vision rehabilitation service providers. Some government and private organizations publish lists of vision rehabilitation service providers organized by category or state. These include:

You can use these lists to find vision rehabilitation services providers in your area and nationwide.

Step 2: Talk to your patients about their needs and goals for living with their visual impairment. This will help you decide together what kinds of vision rehabilitation services will improve your patients’ quality of life and help them maintain their independence.

There are many types of vision rehabilitation services. They include:

  • Employment and job training
  • Assistive products, like lighting and reading stands
  • Technology, like magnifiers and screen readers
  • Daily living and independent living skills trainings
  • Emotional support, like counseling or support groups
  • Transportation and household services

Step 3: Refer your patients to appropriate vision rehabilitation services. Getting diagnosed with an eye disease or condition that causes a visual impairment can feel overwhelming for patients, and they may not know how to find vision rehabilitation services on their own. The American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends that eye care professionals refer their patients to vision rehabilitation services.

Browse NEHEP resources

Use our educational resources to spread the word that vision rehabilitation can improve quality of life for people with a visual impairment.

Hand out articles and fact sheets

Our articles and fact sheets make it easy to spread the word about vision rehabilitation. You can share them online or print them for people in your community.

Share infocards and infographics

These short, easy-to-understand materials give high-level overviews of visual impairment and vision rehabilitation. Print them out to hang in common areas in your practice or post them on your website and social media channels.

Check out videos about visual impairment

Use our videos to help people learn about living with a visual impairment and related eye conditions.

 

Be part of Low Vision Awareness Month in February

Join people across the country to raise awareness about low vision and vision rehabilitation!

Work with the media

Partnering with local newspapers, radio stations, or TV networks is a powerful way to reach people in your community. We have tips and ready-to-use articles that make it easy.

Last updated: April 17, 2023