Trail Blazer
Eve is legally blind and has Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Only four years ago Eve couldn’t walk two kilometers without falling over. Now she is planning walking through some of Tasmania’s most rugged and breath taking scenery
Category: Be Empowered
Why Occupational Therapy?
If you love working with children, in a fun dynamic environment, why not join our Hobart team?
Seven tips to empower you to use public transport
Are you a young person with vision impairment? Have you thought about your future beyond school? Your ability to move confidently and safely in and around the community as a person with vision impairment will empower you for the rest of your life. Whether that be attending TAFE, university, going to work, getting to the…
A great production – our Sensory Stories project takes shape
Reading is one of life’s great pleasures. There are so many benefits introducing books to children at a young age. However, for youngsters who are vision impaired or blind, it can be difficult finding books which they can truly appreciate and enjoy. VisAbility recently secured a Telethon Grant from the Channel 7 Telethon Trust to…
How the ‘power of positivity’ helped Harrison through cancer of the optic-nerve
Harrison Fry’s nickname is ‘Head-banger’ – given to him by his friends because of his love of the rock group ACDC. He plays bass guitar and enjoys singing. The 22-year-old is studying at North Metropolitan TAFE for a Certificate III in Library Information Services. He enjoys research, reading online and technology and has aspirations to…
Understanding Childhood Vision Impairment
By Seb Della Maddalena, Manager, Therapy and Support Services “When I first started working in vision impairment, I thought it was a narrow field (no pun intended). After a few months that perception quickly changed. Lighting is a good example to demonstrate how varied vision impairment strategies can be. Some people with vision impairment benefit…
A Picture Speaks a Thousand Words
Therapy and Support Services Manager, Seb Della Maddalena ponders how non-text cues are a part of everyday life. “Across generations, people have referred to the three Rs; Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. And yes, these are important. Emphasis is placed on developing reading skills, and rightly so, but we also shouldn’t forget the importance of pictures…
The Benefits of Videoconferencing in Therapy
Why we should use video-conferencing more often in therapy By Seb Della Maddalena, Manager, Therapy and Support Services “Technologies such as video-conferencing have opened up a world of opportunity for people with disability. VisAbility Manager of Therapy and Support Services Seb Della Maddalena explores the hidden, yet most significant, benefit of video-conferencing in the delivery…
Chocolate & the NDIS: Why informed choices matter
Written by Seb Della Maddalena, Manager, Therapy and Support Services. “If you didn’t know that too much chocolate wasn’t good for you, how much and what type of chocolate would you eat? White chocolate? Dark chocolate? Any chocolate? You could say some people make an ‘informed choice’ to transition to dark chocolate, in an effort to…
Wayfinding Assistive Technology in the NDIS
VisAbility’s Manager of Therapy and Support Services, Seb Della Maddalena, explores the way different assistive technologies are determined as reasonable and necessary under the NDIS. You may not have realised it, but the NDIS has changed the way that we think and speak. Five years ago, had you heard of the National Disability Insurance Scheme…