Unable to work? Characteristics of people with blindness and low vision who are out of the labor force.

Background: Approximately half of the people who are blind or have low vision in the U.S. are not in the labor force, yet we know little about their characteristics or reasons for being out of the labor force.

Out of the labor force due to health reasons? An analysis of the Survey of Income and Program Participation regarding persons with visual impairments.

Persons with visual impairments (VI) have a high nonparticipation rate in the labor force. Information about factors influencing their labor force participation could provide insight into how to increase employment rates. We selected persons with VI from the Survey of Income and Program Participation to investigate factors that differentiate persons out of the labor force (OLF) for chronic health or disability reasons from those employed and those OLF due to other reasons.

Availability of Mental Health Services for Individuals Who Are Deaf or Deaf-Blind.

A survey of state mental health agencies found that a majority have no specific policy or procedure regarding how to provide mental health services to persons who are deaf or who are deaf-blind. Agency representatives report that staff lack knowledge of how to provide mental health services to persons who are deaf-blind and the agencies lack qualified interpreters. They recommend training for social workers and counselors to address best practices in working with people who are deaf-blind concerning communication methods and strategies, physical interaction, cultural issues, everyday life, sensory deprivation, ethics, use of an interpreter, and other general issues.

Transportation Self-Efficacy and Social Problem-Solving of Persons Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired.

Social problem-solving skills and transportation self-efficacy were assessed for 48 vocational rehabilitation consumers with visual disabilities who required assistance securing work transportation. Social problem solving was at the upper end of the normed average; transportation self-efficacy averaged 101.5 out of 140.

Assessments of nursing home guidelines for quality of care provided to residents with multiple sclerosis.

This study assessed the opinions of nursing directors about quality guidelines developed by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) to assist with the care of nursing home residents with multiple sclerosis (MS). Data were collected in a survey of nursing directors at 800 nursing facilities, with 64 nursing directors participating (8.2% response rate).