Vision Rehabilitation is a vital component in empowering individuals with visual impairments to embrace independence and experience lives filled with purpose. At Vision-Aid, we understand that the effectiveness and accessibility of vision rehabilitation services are closely tied to numerous advocacy and community outreach activities.
Advocacy and outreach are vital components that raise awareness, promote understanding, and ensure access to necessary resources and support for individuals with visual impairments.
Advocacy
Advocacy efforts help raise public awareness about the challenges faced by individuals with visual impairments and Vision-Aid’s vision and mission.
We firmly believe in the transformative power of raising awareness and actively engaging with communities. Our goal at Vision-Aid is to ensure that every individual with a visual impairment has equal access to the support and resources they require.
Participation in national and international conferences
Optometry conference between 13 – 15th October 2022, organized by India Vision Institute
Participation in national and international conferences
OPTO VISTA 2022, a continuing optometry education November 27, 2022 (Sunday) at Madurai
Lecture on “Recent advancements of Low vision devices
& Rehabilitative approach” at the Regional Institute of Ophthalmology, Chennai
Activities of Advocacy at partner locations:
Advocate best practices of Holistic rehabilitation:
Sankara Nethralaya Vision-Aid resource center advocates holistic rehabilitation to infants, young children with visual impairment or visual impairment with multiple disability, to receive visual developmental therapy, sensory integration, fine motor development, eye-hand coordination, behavior management, remedial education, and services for additional interventions like physiotherapy, speech therapy, and occupational therapy.
Library of Essential assistive devices and Aids
A library of all essential assistive devices and aids at the
Vision-Aid resource center of VHS – Vision-Aid resource center.
Education and Training:
Vision-Aid promotes activities like conducting workshops, seminars, and awareness campaigns to educate the public, healthcare professionals, educators, employers, and policymakers about visual impairments and the importance of vision rehabilitation services and best practices. Promote the benefits of early intervention and the use of assistive technologies.
Professional training programs
Vision-Aid and the LV Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad offers two professional educational programs
Orientation programs for professionals:
CECF Vision-Aid Resource Centre organizes Low Vision Orientation programs during conferences. They showcase mobility training for the blind, and various low-vision devices, and provided hands-on training for low-vision aids.
Continuous Medical Education for vision technicians:
There are more than 100 vision centers in the Aravind eye care system. Educational sessions for technicians of vision centers on Vision Rehabilitation and Early Intervention are conducted periodically.
Outreach activities:
Vision-Aid resource centers located around India have been strong supporters of outreach activities and help in bringing services to all the underserved areas.
Below are glimpses of the outreach activities
Aravind Eye Hospital, Madurai
Tele-screening: At Aravind- Vision-Aid resource center -Conducts regular outreach activities and an online camp was conducted with the Govt Pediatric hospital and staff of District Early Intervention Centers of Virudhunagar, a rural district of the south zone of Tamil Nadu.
Dr. Shroffs’ Vision-aid resource center:
Screening camps that benefitted hundreds of individuals conducted at Gorakhpur (UP) by the Shroff-Vision-Aid Delhi team in collaboration with Project Prakash & Basic Education Department Gorakhpur.
Community eye care foundation Pune:
A fully equipped Mobile clinic visits other clinics, Hospitals, and educational institutions to examine and dispense LVAs and guide the patients about further rehabilitation.
The Voluntary Health Services Hospital Chennai
Multi-specialty camp for mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS)
Project IDI:
Centre For Sight conducts vision screening camp at our center in Agra. Screening children for multiple disability and visual disorders is a regular activity of the centre.