A person with a visual impairment is someone whose vision has decreased to a point where it makes it hard to manage with daily life. Visual impairment may result from several underlying eye diseases. According to “Näkövammaisrekisteri” (register of people with a visual impairment) of the Finnish institute for health and welfare (THL), the cause of visual impairment is diabetic retinopathy in 7 percent of working-age people and in 3 percent of elderly people. In the elderly, the most common cause of visual impairment is macular degeneration.
The purpose of rehabilitation is to enable the person to fully participate in all areas of life despite the functional limitations arising from the disease. The task of health care is to direct people in need of rehabilitation to the required services at the right time.
If you have a visual impairment, rehabilitation seeks solutions to the problems with daily life or work resulting from impaired vision:
As a rehabilitee, you are taught to manage with your daily activities as independently as possible and adapt to the life change brought by the visual impairment.
You will receive guidance in the use of tools and aids to help with finding out information and communicating as well as making the most of your remaining vision and other senses in activities such as moving, learning, reading and performing daily chores.