The first step of the process is to schedule a Developmental Vision Assessment. This in-depth assessment will assess your visual system for any possible deficiencies. The testing done during the assessment will be customized to your specific concerns and complaints. If any visual concerns are identified in the assessment then personalized vision therapy will be recommended to help remediate these issues. Vision therapy is effective at treating binocular vision disorders such as convergence insufficiency, convergence excess, accommodative infacility, accommodative insufficiency, and oculo-motor skill deficiencies, as well as strabismus (turned eyes), amblyopia (lazy eye) and visual processing disorders. Vision therapy can also help patients suffering visual symptoms following concussion or other head injury.
At Advance Vision Therapy, we receive referrals from professionals like Teachers, Teacher Assistants, Speech and Language Pathologists, Educational Psychologists, Physicians, Pediatricians, Physiotherapists, and Occupational Therapists. We also accept referrals from parents themselves who are concerned about their child’s eyes.
We treat patients of all ages. Adults that can also benefit from Vision Therapy. Adults who have an acquired brain injury such as concussion, traumatic brain injury, stroke and neuro-degenerative conditions, potentially may have several effects on the visual system and Vision Therapy can help address these issues. Even adults with longstanding strabismus and amblyopia can benefit from Vision Therapy.
Athletes can elevate their level of play and edge out the competition with the help of Advance Vision Therapy.
Every case is different and is assessed with personalized testing and then treatment is customized to your needs to give you the utmost care.
Developmental vision testing goes beyond a Routine Eye Exam. The Routine Eye Exam typically examines only for eye disease, vision at distance and near, the prescription and basic eye muscle function.
During the in-depth vision assessment process, Dr. Bokinac performs detailed assessment of the eye muscle function. We are looking at a patient’s strength, control, flexibility and stamina of their focusing skills and convergence skills that are used to point the eyes near an object to see it clear and single. We also assess the speed and accuracy of the ability to control the eye-tracking muscles when reading or following a real object. After completion of the eye-muscle assessment we move on to assess the Visual Information Processing skills. This portion of the assessment is looking at how your brain is using all of the visual information sent to the brain from the eyes. It is an incredibly broad area that includes dozens of specific skills such as visual sequential processing, visual memory, visual processing speed, visual spatial skills, visual motor skills, and many others.
The assessment typically takes approximately 60-90 minutes.
Once the assessment is complete we create a game plan for therapy personalized to your findings.
A typical office based therapy program is once a week for one hour with one of our highly trained Vision Therapists. Then we supplement this with 15-20 minutes of daily homework at home to build on the skills learned during a treatment session. A typical Vision Therapy program will last between 20 to 50 weeks depending on what condition we are treating and progress our patient is making during that time.
Vision is our dominant sense it drives everything that we do and interact with in our daily lives. If someone has a visual impairment at any level – perceptual or visual motor skills – remediating these impairments can really make a huge impact on quality of life at school and beyond.
Visual Integrity includes factors impacting clear sight, eye health, refraction and visual acuity. It is the foundation of the Visual Pyramid and also the foundation of vision and the routine eye examination. For residents up to age 18 years, Medicare in Saskatchewan pays for what is known as a ‘Refraction’ and ‘eye health assessment’, which essentially tests Visual Integrity. A typical routine eye exam tests only the Visual Integrity level of the Visual Pyramid, including treatment and referral when required.
Visual efficiency involves how the eyes move and interact with one another as a team. It includes Accommodation (or focusing), Ocular Motility (or eye tracking) and Binocular Vision (or eye teaming). This component often requires specialized investigation and treatment. With few exceptions, Medicare in Saskatchewan does NOT pay for thorough Visual Efficiency assessment or treatment. A typical routine eye examination does NOT generally include comprehensive non refractive assessment of Visual Efficiency.
Visual Information Processing involves visual perception which can be defined as the capacity to interpret or give meaning to what the eyes see. The definition includes recognition, insight, and interpretation at the higher levels of the central nervous system of what is seen by the eye. In other words, is what is seen by the eye being properly interpreted by the vision centres in the brain? This vast functional area can be further subdivided into various subsets such as Visual Spatial, Visual Motor Integration and Visual Analysis. Visual Information Processing also requires specialized investigation and treatment. In most cases, Medicare in Saskatchewan does NOT pay for Visual Information Processing assessment and treatment. Similarly, a typical routine eye examination does NOT generally include comprehensive non refractive assessment of Visual Information Processing.
The point of these distinctions is very important because Visual Efficiency and Visual Information Processing deficiencies are present in about 15% of the population and can have a significant impact on reading and school performance. This is why detecting and treating these deficiencies is critical in young people during the period when they are learning to read. This does not understate the value of Visual Integrity Examination. After all, it is the foundation of the Visual Pyramid. However, it illustrates how easily some eye problems can be overlooked in a Visual Integrity Examination. This explains how an eye problem can be suspected by a parent or teacher BUT the vision report from the provider says ‘their eyes are fine’. A more accurate description would be ‘their Visual Integrity was fine’. If thorough Visual Efficiency and Visual Information Processing tests were not performed, these problems, of course, will not be detected. Reading and learning problems often involve healthy eyes but will show issues in the Non-Refractive components of the Visual Pyramid―Visual Efficiency and Visual Information Processing.
Here are some of our vision services:
