The Australian College of Behavioural Optometrists (ACBO) says last minute places are still available for its Practical Vision Therapy training program, which starts next month.
Vision therapy is often prescribed by behavioural optometrists as part of a patient’s treatment plan. The ACBO training program is highly regarded as providing gold-standard education for aspiring vision therapists, and also optometrists who wish to build vision therapy into their patient care regimes.
The 18-month program has a new intake in March every year, with face-to-face workshops and online learning included in the course work. The success of the program has sparked international interest and ACBO will continue to develop the course with a view to licensing its education to other markets.
The program content covers:
- Accommodation / vergence visual dysfunction
- Oculomotor dysfunction
- Visual processing and learning related vision problems (LRVP)
Optional advanced accreditation covers strabismus, ABI/TBI, neurological cases and patients with special needs.
New to Behavioural Optometry
ACBO Executive Officer Veronica Kypros said the Practical Vision Therapy curriculum is ideally suited to optometrists who may be new to behavioural optometry.
“It allows optometrists to provide tailored solutions to their patients. Theory and practical information is balanced to give an understanding of diagnosis, prescribing and delivery of programs. Further reading resources are provided along with procedure write ups for patients to follow at home,” she said.
Accreditation for Vision Therapists
According to Ms. Kypros, the Practical Vision Therapy program has been developed to meet the needs of optometrists and therapists who are interested in providing gold-standard office-based vision therapy for enhanced patient care.
She said the program gives therapists relevant theory and provides an understanding of the development of vision problems and options for management. This is balanced with a strong practical experience, which focuses on delivering therapy techniques to maximise results. To facilitate successful integration of vision therapy into a practice, the Practical Vision Therapy program also assists therapists to develop a working knowledge of issues relating to patient compliance, patient engagement and medico-legal responsibilities.
For information visit: www.acbo.org.au
