Importance of orientation and mobility training

What is orientation and mobility?• Orientation is the ability to recognise one's

position in relation to the environment, whereas mobility is the ability to move around safely and efficiently.

• Orientation and mobility (O&M) training teaches people to use their remaining vision and other senses to get around. Canes and optical aids may also be used.

• Progressive visual impairment often affects people as they age. Training is used to help people with low vision maintain travel independence, with new orientation and mobility skills to compensate for reduced visual information.

•Mobility is defined as physical “movement” and the negotiation of any obstacles and hazards. It is the aim of obtaining freedom of movement without coming to any harm, safety in travelling as well as minimizing the level of stress placed upon a visually impaired person.

Importance of Orientation & Mobility1. Orientation •understand where an object is located and

where the object is in relation to their own bodies

• It sharpens remaining senses through sensory training, develops coordination of movement and improves posture.

•children with limited motoric capabilities, increased independence will mean that they have better developed residual senses and can more fully understand and interpret information from their environments.

•Provides opportunities and skills that can broaden their awareness of the environment, resulting in increased motivation, independence and safety.

•They are taught to use residual visual, auditory and other sensory information to understand his or her environment.

•enhance the quality and quantity of social contacts and integration in community.

2. Mobility

•enables an individual to perform daily activities like going to a common place so that they are able to interact with others and to develop inter-personal relations.

•desirable to expect that they will move independently in both indoor and outdoor environments.

•This independence may mean using a long white cane to cross streets successfully and learning to use city transportation systems.

•able to move with purpose, perhaps to extend an arm or roll to grab that object.

•Important for their personal development by expose the environment & the knowledge of the world

•enable them to avail a variety of real experiences and enhance their understanding of the concepts

•give them more self confidenceand enable them to perform

•these activities at their own convenience and pleasure.

•To be able to move independently within environment is one of the pre-requisites for employment (Hill,1986), gainful occupation, economic rehabilitation or income generation.

•O&M is a pre-requisite for promoting sports among the visually impaired

Different types of Mobility Skills

-Guide arm

Protective Techniques• Allow to travel independently, yet safely, in familiar places, enabling them to locate objects while protecting their bodies.

• Lower body protection (figure 5) with the arm extended down and held diagonally across the body

Trailing- extend the arm at about 45 degrees,

holding the arm to the side and slightly in front of the body while maintaining contact with a surface, such as a wall.

- this method used to maintaining alignment

Cane Techniques•Enable the child to gain confidence in

movement.•Provide safety from the obstructions on the floor.•Be a fun to experience independent movement.•Lay the foundation for the use of mobility cane when the child grows.

Guide dog•Using trained guide dogs for mobility is

popular in Europe.

Hearing•Hearing plays a very important part in the

orientation process.•Auditory clues help to compensate the

hardship caused due to lack of visual perception.