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Lighthouse Guild offers education on treating patients with vision loss
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“Effective communication between physicians and patients is essential to help patients understand any likely progression of their vision loss and to realize that with vision rehabilitation they may not have to give up favorite activities, such as reading and sports,” Lighthouse Guild President and CEO Alan R. Morse, JD, PhD, told Primary Care Optometry News.
His recent Ophthalmology editorial offers guidance for physicians treating patients with vision loss.
Morse emphasizes the important of appreciating and communicating an understanding of the psychological and physical impacts of vision loss.
“Decreased vision is associated with reduced emotional, physical and social functioning, which can have long-term effects on the overall health of patients,” Morse added. “It’s all about the patients’ perceptions. Ignoring them adds to the adverse impact of vision loss.”
He recommends an e-learning course from Lighthouse Guild that provides a basic understanding of vision loss and the vision rehabilitation process and an American Academy of
Ophthalmology video, titled “There is something else you can do.”
Both are available from the American Academy of Ophthalmology website.
Reference:
Morse AR. Ophthalmology. 2018;doi.org/10.1016/j.ophtha.2018.04.004.