VT/Visual Dysfunctions – (VT-1) Oct 2023
This course will be over the internet. Length: 5 days over two weekends. Continuing Education Credits: 28 hours. Prerequisite: None For: Optometrists and Vision Therapists
Course Description
This course has limited registration. Our highly interactive, small group presentations and hands-on activities will provide the experience you need for the confidence you desire. This course offers free follow-up case consultation.
Instructor Bio
Dr. John Abbondanza, OD
Dr. Abbondanza graduated from Milford High School and from Boston College (Go Eagles!) with a degree in Psychology. He graduated with honors in the Beta Sigma Kappa International Optometric Honor Society from the New England College of Optometry, where he was appointed Adjunct Clinical Professor of Optometry in 1991. He is a past President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts Society of Optometrists, where he was the youngest President in the almost 100-year history of the organization. Dr. John has also served on the Suffolk Superior Court Medical Malpractice Tribunal. He lectures extensively to optometrists, educators, occupational therapists, and other groups on how Behavioral Optometry helps people in their daily lives. Dr. John is also certified in Corneal Refractive Therapy, where contact lenses are used to reshape the cornea as an alternative to eyeglasses or LASIK. He is in private practice at Vision Care Specialists in Southborough with a specialization in vision related learning problems.
Dr. John Abbondanza, OD
Courses Details
Length
5 Days
Continuing Education Credits
35 hours
Prerequisite
None
For
Optometrists and Therapists
Location
Over the internet
When
February 24 - 25, 2024 part 1
March 8 - 10, 2024 part 2
Course Description
Visual Dysfunctions teaches a core curriculum of therapy which consists of a series of procedures which are not necessarily specific to any one dysfunction but which together lead to successful, happy and enthusiastic patients. Visual Dysfunctions is:
Hands On:
Individual procedures will be demonstrated and explained in depth. Your instructor will act as a therapist. Participants will become “patients” during the demonstrations. The instructor will demonstrate how to modify the procedures by changing the loading to adjust the demand levels to precisely the level needed to achieve maximum development.
Core Techniques:
AN Dissociated and Associated Pointing, AP Rule, Balance Board, Brock String, Cheiroscopic Tracings, Coin Circles, Central-Peripheral Saccades, “Ninja Training”, Eye Control, Keystone Fusion Games, Lightboard, Motor Equivalence, Overlapping pictures, Tachistoscope, Vectograms, VO Stars, Walking Rail, and Wallach Rings to name just a few.
The philosophy and rationale behind effective therapy will be discussed and demonstrate that techniques and VT equipment don’t by themselves make for effective VT.
Course Highlights
Our instructors will share their over 100 years experience in running co-management practices and provide you with the basis to get you started. Case presentation and information on handling insurance.
Each participant receives a complete manual of all VT procedures, homework sheets, procedure grids, explanations and all materials to get you up and running immediately.
Mastering the procedures is not the key. It is the principles stressed by each technique and the ability to help the patient experience the process that is unique to the Clinical Curriculum.
The Visual Dysfunction course is a prerequisite for the Learning Related Visual Problems and the Strabismus & Amblyopia courses. This is often
the first course taken by vision therapists. The Clinical Curriculum faculty has been very successful at making the new therapist comfortable with being in the same class as more experienced therapists, as well as with optometrists. For a therapist to attend a course, the normal procedure is that they may either attend the course with their OD or the OD must have attended a Clinical Curriculum course at a prior date.
Bio
Dr. John Abbondanza, OD
Instructor and Chair of the Education Committee
Dr. Abbondanza graduated from Milford High School and from Boston College (Go Eagles!) with a degree in Psychology. He graduated with honors in the Beta Sigma Kappa International Optometric Honor Society from the New England College of Optometry, where he was appointed Adjunct Clinical Professor of Optometry in 1991. He is a past President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts Society of Optometrists, where he was the youngest President in the almost 100-year history of the organization. Dr. John has also served on the Suffolk Superior Court Medical Malpractice Tribunal. He lectures extensively to optometrists, educators, occupational therapists, and other groups on how Behavioral Optometry helps people in their daily lives. Dr. John is also certified in Corneal Refractive Therapy, where contact lenses are used to reshape the cornea as an alternative to eyeglasses or LASIK. He is in private practice at Vision Care Specialists in Southborough with a specialization in vision related learning problems.
Dr. John is a 30-year member of the American Optometric Association and a clinical associate of the Optometric Extension Program Foundation (OEPF), which is the national organization of Behavioral Optometrists. He is board certified in Vision Therapy as a Fellow of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD). Dr. John serves on the Northeast Regional Congress of Optometrists Committee where he was recently appointed Chair of their Clinical Seminar. He is also on the Budget Committee of the COVD and is the Massachusetts Chairman of the OEP. Additionally, Dr. John is the Massachusetts leader of the national InfantSEE program.
Course Schedule
Course will run 11am to 7pm daily and will end at 5pm on last day
For additional detail please call:
410 561 3791
Or email:
sherice.gainey@oepf.org
line.vreven@oepf.org
For additional educational opportunities please
contact:
line.vreven@oepf.org
Cancellation policy
We are not offering any cancellation fee at this time only voucher towards future courses with a valid cancellation reason.
Pre-Course Readings (All Attendees)
The Evolution of a Model and A Model of Vision (Read The Evolution of a Model first.) are included to introduce you to our approach to teaching. These two papers describe the process for much of what comes in the courses and we hope you understand that we instructors evolve in our thinking much like we hope you will. We hope to take you on a compressed journey through the evolution of our thinking. We will begin an area by showing you where we were at one time in our development. Then we present the unanswered questions that became the foundation for looking at things in a different way. We will then present our understandings now and include new information for where we might go in the future.
The Evolution of a Model was presented at the Skeffington Symposium in Washington DC in the early 1980’s. This paper charts the development of Paul Harris’ model of vision from what he assimilated from his years at SUNY (1975-79) until the time of the writing of the paper. Much of the change came as a result of a presentation by Dr. Robert A. Kraskin and involvement in the Washington DC based OEPF study group, the Institute for Behavioral Optometry. A Model of Vision was initially presented at the Skeffington Symposium in Washington DC and then adapted for the JOVD.
The following articles have been put in the recommended order to be read:
- Harris, Paul, “The Evolution of a Model”, Skeffington Symposium
- This paper was presented at the Skeffington Symposium in Washington DC in the early 1980’s. This paper charts the development of Paul Harris’ model of vision from what he assimilated from his years at SUNY (1975-79) until the time of the writing of the paper. Much of the change came as a result of a presentation by Dr. Robert A. Kraskin and involvement in the Washington DC based OEPF study group, the Institute for Behavioral Optometry.
- Harris, Paul, “Perspectives on Behavioral Optometry — A Model of Vision”, JOVD
- This paper was initially presented at the Skeffington Symposium in Washington DC and then adapted for the JOVD.
- Harris, Paul, “Visual Conditions of Symphony Musicians”, JAOA, Volume 59, Number 12, 12/88
- This paper describes the development of astigmatism based on the relationship between posture and vision. The most important concept in this paper is the relationship between visual conditions and what the person does in life.
- Harris, Paul, “Additional Topics to Original, Visual Conditions of Symphony Musicians”
- When the above article was written it included additional information that was edited out during the pre-publication period. This pre-reading contains this additional material in order to help make the concepts more complete.
- Harris, Paul, “The Prevalence of Visual Conditions in a Population of Juvenile Delinquents”, OEPF, Curriculum II, Volume 61, Number 4, January 1989
- This paper, while dated, is included here because the article includes fundamental discussions of the examination process including specific descriptions of the testing sequence, lighting conditions, targets, and instructional sets. The appendix of this paper was first written as a step-by-step “How-to” guide for the Optometric Center of Maryland. The paper introduces the concepts of the “Visual Virgin” and embeddedness, as well as other new topics covered in the Art and Science course.
- Williams, GJ, Kitchener G, Press LJ, Steele GT, Vision: A Collaboration of Eyes and Brain
- This paper was created jointly by the authors and was adopted by the American Optometric Association as a position paper. It is a well-documented and succinct in showing that their vision is much more than just sight and gives insight into the degree that the eyes and brain are in full partnership in helping the visual process emerge.
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For: Optometrists and Therapists
As an OEPF Clinical Associate, sign up for this course via your dashboard on the website. You need to sign into the website with your login to get your CA discount. For questions contact Sheric.Gainey@oepf.org
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**Retaking a course (A&S, VT1,VT2,VT3) previously attended. Must be able to provide proof of completion if asked.