The National Eye Institute’s low vision education program:: Improving quality of life

Abstract

People who have low vision need hope. They need to know that their quality of life can improve, even though their vision isn’t as good as it once was. In October 1999, the National Eye Institute (NEI) will give hope to those with low vision and their families when it launches the Low Vision Education Program.This new program will increase awareness of low vision’s devastating impact on quality of life and is directed toward people with low vision, their families and friends, and those of us in the health care field who care for them. Providing hope and improving quality of life is no small challenge because 14 million Americans—one in every 20—have low vision. It primarily affects the growing population of people over age 65 and other higher risk populations, such as Hispanics and African Americans, who are likely to experience low vision at an earlier age. NEI research has found that most people with low vision do not have the information and assistance they need to cope with their vision loss. Through its National Eye Health Education Program, a partnership of almost 60 public and private organizations, the NEI will help meet this challenge.We define low vision as a visual impairment, not corrected by standard glasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery, that interferes with the ability to perform everyday activities. Low vision can leave a person anxious, depressed, confused, or even fearful of surroundings. It affects social interactions and can lead to a loss of independence. People with low vision may experience frustration and uncertainty. Often there are financial, social, and psychological stresses on their families. The Low Vision Education Program will emphasize the importance of vision rehabilitation for people with low vision.The program will incorporate several strategies: 1.A broad-based consumer media campaign. This includes public service announcements for print, radio, and television. It will also involve placing stories in newspapers and magazines. Our objective is to work with the media to highlight the benefits of vision rehabilitation for millions of Americans.2.Educational materials. These will include a large-print brochure, audiotape, and videotape that will be distributed directly to the public and also through health care professionals, social service organizations, and other groups that work with and serve older adults.3.An outreach program. Aimed at health care professionals and social service organizations, this program will increase professional awareness of low vision issues. It will include exhibits and presentations at professional meetings and conferences.4.Traveling exhibits. These exhibits will be displayed in shopping malls nationwide. Through interactive displays, the exhibits will increase public awareness about low vision and the available resources. Local grantee institutions and organizations may host the exhibit in each community, providing information on local resources.As eye care professionals, we should view the NEI’s Low Vision Education Program as an opportunity to fill the information gap for people who have low vision and believe they have no hope for improving their daily lives. People with low vision need to know that there is information about how to cope with their condition. We need to talk with our patients about how visual and adaptive devices and rehabilitative services can help them use remaining vision more effectively. We need to inform their family members and caregivers how they can support their loved ones who have low vision. We should increase referrals to organizations and agencies that offer support for people with low vision. And we can better involve the public health community in identifying low vision problems and solutions. All these can lead to greater advances in low vision treatments and a better quality of life for people with low vision.Why so much attention to low vision? Consider these facts: •More than $22 billion is spent annually on care and services for people who are blind or have visual impairments. The costs include treatment, education, loss of personal income, and associated costs, such as Social Security disability benefits.1Alliance for Eye and Vision Research. A vision of hope for older Americans’ progress and opportunities in eye and vision research. An official report to the White House Conference on Aging. Alliance for Eye and Vision Research, Washington, DC, 1995.Google Scholar•One third of all people with visual impairments who responded to a 1994 Lighthouse survey said that their vision problems created some difficulty in performing their jobs.2The Lighthouse. The Lighthouse national survey on vision loss: the experience, attitudes, and knowledge of middle-aged and older Americans. New York: The Lighthouse, Inc., Louis Harris and Associates, Inc., 1994.Google Scholar•Half of all respondents to the Lighthouse survey said that loss of income as a result of low vision was a somewhat or very serious problem.2The Lighthouse. The Lighthouse national survey on vision loss: the experience, attitudes, and knowledge of middle-aged and older Americans. New York: The Lighthouse, Inc., Louis Harris and Associates, Inc., 1994.Google Scholar•Evidence suggests that the loss of stereoscopic vision and depth perception increases the chance of an individual falling.3Bachelder J.M. Harkins Jr, D. Do occupational therapists have a primary role in low vision rehabilitation?.Am J Occup Ther. 1995; 49: 927-930Crossref PubMed Scopus (9) Google Scholar•Low vision ranks just behind arthritis and heart disease as the cause for impaired function in people older than 70.3Bachelder J.M. Harkins Jr, D. Do occupational therapists have a primary role in low vision rehabilitation?.Am J Occup Ther. 1995; 49: 927-930Crossref PubMed Scopus (9) Google Scholar•The population of Americans age 65 and over is increasing rapidly with the aging of the “baby boomers.” The number of people with low vision is expected to increase as well.Despite these facts, minimal epidemiologic data have been available on the prevalence of low vision, except in regional or limited studies. The Disability Supplement of the National Health Interview Survey in 1994 and 1995 asked if anyone in the respondent’s household had a “serious difficulty seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses.” From this study, the rate of impairment was found to be 32.5 per 1,000 persons.4Swagerty Jr, D.L. The impact of age-related visual impairment on functional independence in the elderly.Kans Med. 1995; 96: 24-26PubMed Google ScholarThe NEI also conducted qualitative research (through focus groups and in-person and telephone interviews) in 1997 and 1998 to understand how low vision affects individuals. Participants in the focus group said reading was the activity most often affected by low vision. Many individuals became frustrated when they could not read their mail or the small type on menus, price tags, or labels. They often became socially isolated because travel outside the home was too difficult. Sadly, many older adults with low vision believed that it was a natural part of the aging process and something they had to learn to accept.These attitudes can be changed. Let’s help create an environment in which low vision is better understood. Let’s play an increasing role in helping our patients live with and overcome the problem of low vision. Let’s give our patients hope. We are all partners in the Low Vision Education Program. By working together, let’s allow our patients an opportunity to continue leading independent and full lives.5Benson V. Marano M.A. Current estimates from the National Health Interview Survey, 1995.Vital Health Stat. 1998; 10: 1-428Google Scholar People who have low vision need hope. They need to know that their quality of life can improve, even though their vision isn’t as good as it once was. In October 1999, the National Eye Institute (NEI) will give hope to those with low vision and their families when it launches the Low Vision Education Program. This new program will increase awareness of low vision’s devastating impact on quality of life and is directed toward people with low vision, their families and friends, and those of us in the health care field who care for them. Providing hope and improving quality of life is no small challenge because 14 million Americans—one in every 20—have low vision. It primarily affects the growing population of people over age 65 and other higher risk populations, such as Hispanics and African Americans, who are likely to experience low vision at an earlier age. NEI research has found that most people with low vision do not have the information and assistance they need to cope with their vision loss. Through its National Eye Health Education Program, a partnership of almost 60 public and private organizations, the NEI will help meet this challenge. We define low vision as a visual impairment, not corrected by standard glasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery, that interferes with the ability to perform everyday activities. Low vision can leave a person anxious, depressed, confused, or even fearful of surroundings. It affects social interactions and can lead to a loss of independence. People with low vision may experience frustration and uncertainty. Often there are financial, social, and psychological stresses on their families. The Low Vision Education Program will emphasize the importance of vision rehabilitation for people with low vision. The program will incorporate several strategies: 1.A broad-based consumer media campaign. This includes public service announcements for print, radio, and television. It will also involve placing stories in newspapers and magazines. Our objective is to work with the media to highlight the benefits of vision rehabilitation for millions of Americans.2.Educational materials. These will include a large-print brochure, audiotape, and videotape that will be distributed directly to the public and also through health care professionals, social service organizations, and other groups that work with and serve older adults.3.An outreach program. Aimed at health care professionals and social service organizations, this program will increase professional awareness of low vision issues. It will include exhibits and presentations at professional meetings and conferences.4.Traveling exhibits. These exhibits will be displayed in shopping malls nationwide. Through interactive displays, the exhibits will increase public awareness about low vision and the available resources. Local grantee institutions and organizations may host the exhibit in each community, providing information on local resources. As eye care professionals, we should view the NEI’s Low Vision Education Program as an opportunity to fill the information gap for people who have low vision and believe they have no hope for improving their daily lives. People with low vision need to know that there is information about how to cope with their condition. We need to talk with our patients about how visual and adaptive devices and rehabilitative services can help them use remaining vision more effectively. We need to inform their family members and caregivers how they can support their loved ones who have low vision. We should increase referrals to organizations and agencies that offer support for people with low vision. And we can better involve the public health community in identifying low vision problems and solutions. All these can lead to greater advances in low vision treatments and a better quality of life for people with low vision. Why so much attention to low vision? Consider these facts: •More than $22 billion is spent annually on care and services for people who are blind or have visual impairments. The costs include treatment, education, loss of personal income, and associated costs, such as Social Security disability benefits.1Alliance for Eye and Vision Research. A vision of hope for older Americans’ progress and opportunities in eye and vision research. An official report to the White House Conference on Aging. Alliance for Eye and Vision Research, Washington, DC, 1995.Google Scholar•One third of all people with visual impairments who responded to a 1994 Lighthouse survey said that their vision problems created some difficulty in performing their jobs.2The Lighthouse. The Lighthouse national survey on vision loss: the experience, attitudes, and knowledge of middle-aged and older Americans. New York: The Lighthouse, Inc., Louis Harris and Associates, Inc., 1994.Google Scholar•Half of all respondents to the Lighthouse survey said that loss of income as a result of low vision was a somewhat or very serious problem.2The Lighthouse. The Lighthouse national survey on vision loss: the experience, attitudes, and knowledge of middle-aged and older Americans. New York: The Lighthouse, Inc., Louis Harris and Associates, Inc., 1994.Google Scholar•Evidence suggests that the loss of stereoscopic vision and depth perception increases the chance of an individual falling.3Bachelder J.M. Harkins Jr, D. Do occupational therapists have a primary role in low vision rehabilitation?.Am J Occup Ther. 1995; 49: 927-930Crossref PubMed Scopus (9) Google Scholar•Low vision ranks just behind arthritis and heart disease as the cause for impaired function in people older than 70.3Bachelder J.M. Harkins Jr, D. Do occupational therapists have a primary role in low vision rehabilitation?.Am J Occup Ther. 1995; 49: 927-930Crossref PubMed Scopus (9) Google Scholar•The population of Americans age 65 and over is increasing rapidly with the aging of the “baby boomers.” The number of people with low vision is expected to increase as well. Despite these facts, minimal epidemiologic data have been available on the prevalence of low vision, except in regional or limited studies. The Disability Supplement of the National Health Interview Survey in 1994 and 1995 asked if anyone in the respondent’s household had a “serious difficulty seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses.” From this study, the rate of impairment was found to be 32.5 per 1,000 persons.4Swagerty Jr, D.L. The impact of age-related visual impairment on functional independence in the elderly.Kans Med. 1995; 96: 24-26PubMed Google Scholar The NEI also conducted qualitative research (through focus groups and in-person and telephone interviews) in 1997 and 1998 to understand how low vision affects individuals. Participants in the focus group said reading was the activity most often affected by low vision. Many individuals became frustrated when they could not read their mail or the small type on menus, price tags, or labels. They often became socially isolated because travel outside the home was too difficult. Sadly, many older adults with low vision believed that it was a natural part of the aging process and something they had to learn to accept. These attitudes can be changed. Let’s help create an environment in which low vision is better understood. Let’s play an increasing role in helping our patients live with and overcome the problem of low vision. Let’s give our patients hope. We are all partners in the Low Vision Education Program. By working together, let’s allow our patients an opportunity to continue leading independent and full lives.5Benson V. Marano M.A. Current estimates from the National Health Interview Survey, 1995.Vital Health Stat. 1998; 10: 1-428Google Scholar