The Duke Vision Rehabilitation and Performance Division at Duke Eye Center may be the best in the country, and one of only two in the southeast US. Led by Diane Whitaker, OD Duke's state-of-the-art vision rehabilitation center and occupational therapy program helps patients with vision loss manage day-to-day activities with training, tools, and therapy. 

Mission

  • Provide comprehensive vision rehabilitation through a multi-disciplinary team of health care providers for patients who have lost vision to age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, stroke, diabetes, and other eye diseases 

  • Discover important new knowledge about better ways to rehabilitate vision and translate findings into new care modalities 

  • Provide educational and training resources to occupational therapists, optometrists, ophthalmologists, other medical specialists and patients 

Highlights

  • Developed new delivery models of team-based care, identifying specific outcome metrics relative to vision rehabilitation interventions, and analyzing the effects of co-morbid conditions on functional trajectory in the presence of visual impairment. 

  • Research in visual performance, which measures dynamic visual function and the visual motor skills needed for driving, safe mobility, and performance of activities of daily living are of particular interest for future research projects. 

  • Assist Duke faculty with ongoing clinical research programs that require low vision assessment and services as part of their research program (ex, artificial vision, geriatrics) 

  • Advanced training opportunities are available for optometrists, ophthalmologists, occupational therapists, certified occupational therapy assistants, geriatric specialists, and certified low vision therapists in both a classroom and clinical setting. 

  • Clinical social workers and other individuals that work with visually impaired individuals are also welcome to observe clinical practices. 

  • Duke Eye Center Vision Rehabilitation Division has partnered with the new Duke OTD program to provide the first cross certification for doctors of occupational therapy (OTD), as certified low vision therapists (CLVT), upon completion of a 14-week Capstone elective program. This program will advance the multidisciplinary field of vision rehabilitation and set new national standards of care. 

Duke Eye Center offers low vision rehabilitation services led by optometrists who are experts in low vision assessment and nationally recognized for contributions to advancing patient care. Duke's state-of-the-art vision rehabilitation center and occupational therapy program helps patients with vision loss manage day-to-day activities with training, tools, and therapy. 

Duke Eye Center is consistently ranked among the top 10 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Duke Eye Center provides compassionate and cutting-edge preventive, diagnostic, and therapeutic services to patients needing vision rehabilitation.