**Registration Closed**

Course Location:

Courtyard Toronto Airport
231 Carlingview Drive, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M9W 5E8
Tel: +1 416-675-0411

Saturday 9-5pm
Sunday 9-4pm

Title:

The Consequences of Neuro-Visual Processing
Compromise Following a Neurological Event

Presenter:

William V. Padula OD SFNAP FAAPO FNORA

Speaker Info:

William V. Padula, O.D., is a graduate of Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University of Health Sciences. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, the Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association International (NORA), and the National Academy of Practice.

Dr. Padula completed a fellowship at the Gesell Institute where he was also Director of Vision Research.  He was the founding Chairman of the Low Vision Section for the American Optometric Association, and the founding President of NORA.  Dr. Padula was appointed the National Consultant in Low Vision Services for the American Foundation for the Blind.  He has also served as Consultant to the Committee on Vision for the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C. Recently he has served as a consultant to the Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C. He is the Past Chairperson of the National Academy of Practice in Optometry, and is the Treasurer of the National Academy of Practice (NAP).

Dr. Padula founded the first low vision clinic at the Zhongshan Eye Research Hospital in Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China, which was named in his honor. He lectures and consults internationally in China, India, Italy, Mexico, etc., with programs regarding children’s vision related to learning and development, and adult vision problems related to stroke, TBI and other physical challenges.

Dr. Padula has authored numerous publications including three books:

• A Behavioral Vision Approach for Persons With Physical Disabilities
• Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation
• Neuro-Visual Processing Rehabilitation: An Interdisciplinary Approach

and he is the primary author of a chapter on vision in Brain Injury Medicine.  He has developed three award winning educational videotapes about vision and Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation for persons with neurological challenges.  He also holds five U.S. patents for instruments related to vision.

Dr. Padula is on staff at both the Hospital for Special Care and Gaylord Hospital in Connecticut, and he has a private practice in Guilford, Connecticut. He was honored to be chosen Connecticut Optometrist of the Year in 2009 by his colleagues in the Connecticut Association of Optometrists.

Description:

This course will utilize participant interaction, videos and didactic presentation to develop a paradigm shift in understanding that neuro-visual processing affects posture, movement and visually guided behavior. Dr. Padula will provide a review of research about visual processing and its development as well as the consequences of compromise affecting function and performance. Participants with a general knowledge about visual function will be led to understand how the bi-modal visual process serves organization of function as well as creates characteristics of dysfunction following a visual processing compromise due to a neurological event.

At the conclusion of this session participants will be able to:

1. Understand and discuss the important points in research about neuro-visual processing, apply an understanding of how functional visual skills develop from postural organization during child development, apply an understanding of how postural development affects organization of the bi-modal visual process, and utilize the understanding of bi-modal visual processing to affect therapy and rehabilitation and create the paradigm shift in thinking that neuro-visual processing is the primary means of vision affecting function and performance.
2. Discuss and use information about spatial visual processing to affect postural organization, utilize this information about visual processing to engage inter-professional interaction in their community both for recognizing the need for occupational therapy as well as to recognize the need for vision specialists to work in conjunction with occupational therapists, discuss and utilize prescribed yoked prisms in conjunction with occupational therapy affecting postural organization, movement and visually guided action, and apply Neuro-Visual Postural Therapy (NVPT) to engage visual processing and in particular spatial visual processing to affect rehabilitation outcome.

Research about neuro-visual processing will develop a paradigm shift about vision and development incorporating the bi-modal visual process. This will lead to applying this understanding of the bi-modal visual process for a new therapeutic approach: Neuro-Visual Postural Therapy (NVPT).