The number of individuals in the United States age 65 or older is expected to more than double to nearly 70 million by 2030. As the population of older adults increases, so too does the number of people with vision impairments that significantly impact their quality of life.
Additionally, vision loss or blindness can originate from injury or trauma, congenital or genetic origin or disease beginning at birth or early childhood. That means virtually every medical professional will come into contact with a patient with low vision. As such, they need the most up-to-date information and education available to make good clinical decisions for patients in their care.
Armed with the theme, “Excellence in Research,” Envision Conference 2011, the largest inter-disciplinary low vision conference in the United States, takes place Sept. 21-24 at the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark in St. Louis, Missouri, and features clinical education, workshops and research presentations offering some of the most advanced research and treatments by top experts in low vision rehabilitation from across the globe.
“While we recognize vision loss cannot typically be reversed, we believe comprehensive vision rehabilitation, carried out in a multi-disciplinary fashion that involves everyone from physician to occupational therapist to optometrist—and even teachers in the case of children—can significantly enhance the quality of life for these individuals,” says Conference Director, Michael Epp, who also serves as Director of Professional Education for Envision.
Noted a 2010 attendee: The format of the research sessions is particularly effective. Truly promotes the multi-disciplinary uniqueness of this conference.
Activities kick-off Wednesday, Sept. 21 with pre-conference workshops. The full conference begins at 8 AM, Thursday, Sept. 22 with Professor Gary Rubin, Gold Fellow of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology and Honorary Fellow of the College of Optometrists in the UK, delivering the opening keynote address, “Excellence in Research.”
In addition to publishing more than 100 scientific papers and book chapters, some of Dr. Rubin’s more noted research includes reading and face recognition in people with impaired vision and the effects of visual impairment on older people’s daily lives. He is also heavily involved in the development and validation of new clinical vision tests used in a wide range of eye diseases including cataracts, macular degeneration, and diseases of the optic nerve.
Another conference highlight that afternoon is a five-person panel to include Olga Overbury, PhD; Walter Wittich, PhD; Sheila Xi Huang; Erin Flynn-Evans; and Joseph Hull, PhD. This group will present previously unconsidered issues related to the relationship between sleep disorders and visual impairment. The panel will discuss the relationship between sleep quality and visual impairment; prevalence rates of sleep disorders among the visually impaired; and the physical and cognitive effects of sleeplessness.
The Thursday evening welcome reception offers networking opportunities and a chance to meet invited speakers and vendors. On Friday, Sept. 23, Ronald Schuchard, PhD of the Alto Research Center, will moderate a panel of experts presenting research on Functional Performance and Outcomes. Deborah Gold, PhD, will also moderate a panel presenting research on various aspects of employment for people who are blind or low vision. On Saturday, Sept. 24, George Timberlake, PhD, and Schuchard will team up to moderate a panel of experts, sharing late-breaking low vision research.
Continuing education credits will be available for optometrists, ophthalmologists, occupational therapists, rehabilitation therapists, licensed visual therapists, nurses, vision researchers and other low vision rehabilitation professionals from across the country, through the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), Association of Regulatory Boards of Optometry (ARBO) Partial COPE Approval, Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP) and the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC).
Additionally, the Envision Conference benefits special education teachers, community agency personnel, government policy makers and assistive technology practitioners.
Register Today. Envision Conference 2011 will take place September 21-24 in St. Louis, Missouri. To register or learn more about Envision Conference visit the website at www.envisionconference.org or contact Michael Epp, Director, Professional Education, at michael.epp@envisionus.com. For updates from Envision Conference, follow us on Twitter (@EnvisionConf) or find us on Facebook.
