Abstract
Purpose :
To initiate an international discourse on consensus towards optimal training environments for highly qualified personnel, including practitioners and researchers interested in vision impairment and rehabilitation. Current training options are typically incomplete, segmented or absent from many academic environments. Using the Graduate Program for Vision Science at the Université de Montréal (UdeM) as an example, we present an education model to address this need that provides both applied and research training under one roof.
Methods :
In 2016, and in consultation with 1 national and 2 local vision rehabilitation centers, UdeM developed and established a bilingual Master’s degree program in Vision Science to specifically train rehabilitation professionals in orientation & mobility (O&M), low vision (LV) and vision rehabilitation therapy (VRT). The hierarchical structure and development timeline of the program options are presented in Figure 1. Trainees may choose between a professional track, leading to employment as clinician-scientists, or the research track, leading towards academia, research and/or industry (Figure 2). Enrolment and graduation data were extracted from the UdeM administrative database.
Results :
Since Sept. 2016, 63 students have enrolled in the professional Master’s, 31 (8 O&M, 20 LV, 3 VRT) have graduated and 25 are in progress. Additionally, 1 Basic-Science Master’s thesis was completed, with 1 in progress, and 3 PhD students have graduated, with 2 in progress (the first PhD on vision rehabilitation graduated in 2017). One postdoctoral fellowship has been completed, with 2 in progress. In total, 66 trainees have completed or are currently concentrating their practicum and research efforts on Vision Impairment & Rehabilitation.
Conclusions :
The presented program structure has been extremely productive in generating highly qualified personnel. The parallel tracks facilitate cross-fertilization of relevant ideas, and support integrated knowledge translation through collaboration with clinic-based internship supervisors. This training structure of clinicians as potential future collaborators allows the field of vision impairment & (especially) rehabilitation to move forward where evidence-based practice is concerned.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.