Draft:Vision Rehabilitation Therapist

• Comment: more citations needed; too narrowly focused on US/Canada Snowman304|talk 03:49, 22 October 2024 (UTC)

• Comment: Draft currently focuses exclusively on the United States. Would be good to see some coverage on visual rehabilitation in other countries. Mgp28 (talk) 12:12, 29 July 2024 (UTC)

• Comment: This is a bit better, but it's far from acceptable. Some valid sources were added, but the article is still full of acvrep.org links, and a bunch of (unacceptable) inline URLs. Plus, the wording esp. in the beginning is not encyclopedic, for starters. Drmies (talk) 17:36, 26 March 2024 (UTC)

• Comment: ck if merge is needed DGG ( talk ) 06:24, 20 January 2022 (UTC)

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The Vision Rehabilitation Therapist or VRT is a professional who provides training to individuals who are blind or visually impaired with adapted daily living skills. Vision Rehabilitation Therapists work for state or federal agencies, non-profit agencies, or work as private contractors. The Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP) offers certification for vision rehabilitation professionals in Canada and the United States.

History

Vision rehabilitation therapy began in the mid-1800s with individuals, later called Home Teachers, who taught people who were blind or visually impaired techniques for reading religious material using tactile symbols embossed on paper. One of the first such Home Teachers, Dr. William Moon, developed a set of tactile symbols, called Moon Type and established The Home Teaching and Visiting Society of London. Dr. Moon and John Rhoads of the American Bible Society established the Pennsylvania Home Teaching Society and Free Library for the Blind, in the United States, in 1882. In 1887 the Perkins School for the Blind sent Anne Sullivan to Alabama to work with 7 year-old Helen Keller as a Home Teacher, and trained their first group of Home Teachers in 1900.

The first national, professional certification was developed by the American Association of Workers for the Blind (AAWB) in 1945.  Western Michigan University established the first graduate-level training program for Home Teachers, in 1963.  The professional title of Home Teachers was changed, in 1965, to Rehabilitation Teacher, and changed again in 2002 to Vision Rehabilitation Therapist (VRT). During this time, the AAWB changed its name several times, and is now known as the Association of Educators and Rehabilitators of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AERBVI).

Techniques and Training

A vision Rehabilitation Therapist (VRT) provides specialized instruction and guidance to individuals who are blind or have low vision. A VRT most often completes a Master's degree in vision rehabilitation, a national certification (CVRT), and works within the scope of practice outlined by ACVREP. Vision rehabilitation therapy includes Instruction in the use of adaptive skills and compensatory strategies to help individuals with vision loss to meet their specific goals in the workplace, home, school, and community. The VRT serves individuals of any age, whether vision loss is present at birth or acquired later in life.

Typical VRT assessments include visual abilities, other physical limitations, social supports, and emotional adjustment to vision loss. VRT training often uses strategies which include other senses to complete tasks, use of devices that enhance low vision or increase accessibility, and problem-based learning.

Vision rehabilitation therapy may include:

• Low vision skills and devices
• Communication such as alternative forms of reading, writing, braille, and assistive technology
• Personal management, including grooming, medication management, meal preparation and home care
• Leisure activities such as crafts, active forms of recreation, and adapted games
• Counseling, including adjustment to vision loss
• Computer access
• Employment readiness skills
• Jobsite accommodations

Certification

Vision Rehabilitation Therapists are nationally certified, by the  Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP) in both the U.S. and Canada. To obtain certification as a CVRT, professionals must complete a course of study through a university program, complete a 350-hour internship, and pass a certification examination. The Certified Vision Rehabilitation Therapist uses the professional credentials CVRT.

Degree Programs

The following universities offer degrees in vision rehabilitation therapy:

• Hunter College
• Northern Illinois University
• Salus University
• University of Massachusetts at Boston
• University of Montreal
• Western Michigan University

Employment

Vision Rehabilitation Therapists are hired by state vocational rehabilitation programs, non-profit agencies, Veterans’ Administration (VA) hospitals, or they may choose self-employment, working as private contractors. A VRT may provide services one-on-one or in a group setting. Services are provided in the client's home, classroom, workplace, or community to include the same environmental factors for skill development and task completion. Services might also be provided in a residential or rehabilitation facility.