Geisinger employees trained to accommodate blind, visually impaired patients
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Northeast Sight Services educates 65 Forward Health Center
KINGSTON, Pa. – Geisinger’s 65 Forward Health Center just became even more well-equipped to care for patients 65 and older.
The primary care facility — already specifically tailored to the expanding 65-and-over population with small patient panels, longer doctor’s visits, in-house lab and imaging services, and health, wellness and social activities — recently received accessibility training for blind and visually impaired patients from Northeast Sight Services. Geisinger was the first organization to participate in the nonprofit’s 2020 Community Accessibility Campaign.
Exeter-based Northeast Sight Services recognizes the need to provide resources for the fastest-growing segment of the United States population as the baby boomer generation continues to age into the 65-and-beyond bracket for the next 9 years. This aligns squarely with Geisinger’s mission to make health easier for that same group of people by redesigning primary care to offer them an additional layer of care.
“For more than 100 years, Northeast Sight Services has worked to improve quality of life and help maintain independence for people who are blind or have low vision,” said Amy Feldman, the organization’s director of development. “Working with Geisinger to bolster that effort in our community is a natural collaboration.”
Feldman and Northeast Sight Services vision resource manager Kristen Boyle presented to the 65 Forward staff, educating them on available resources for the blind and visually impaired, the wide spectrum of people with visual needs, proper practice for guiding and assisting patients, and even how the architecture and lighting in a space can affect patient experience.
The presentation featured live demonstrations of sighted guide—the dos and don’ts of assisting the blind and visually impaired—and passing around glasses specially designed to allow wearers to experience the effects of age-related eye conditions like macular degeneration and glaucoma.
“This training was incredibly helpful to our staff,” said Stephanie Pacovsky, operations manager for Geisinger 65 Forward locations in Kingston and Scranton. “Our health center already meets much of the criteria for being accessible to the visually impaired, but with this additional education, we will be better suited to care for our patients with visual needs.”
65 Forward staff physician James Tricarico, D.O., said he found the training valuable as well.
“It’s important for us to realize that not everyone who has low vision and needs help navigating our health center can be as easily identified as someone who might be using a cane or a service animal,” said Dr. Tricarico. “Knowing how to engage and guide our visually impaired patients will help us care for them as efficiently as we do their sighted counterparts.”
The primary care facility — already specifically tailored to the expanding 65-and-over population with small patient panels, longer doctor’s visits, in-house lab and imaging services, and health, wellness and social activities — recently received accessibility training for blind and visually impaired patients from Northeast Sight Services. Geisinger was the first organization to participate in the nonprofit’s 2020 Community Accessibility Campaign.
Exeter-based Northeast Sight Services recognizes the need to provide resources for the fastest-growing segment of the United States population as the baby boomer generation continues to age into the 65-and-beyond bracket for the next 9 years. This aligns squarely with Geisinger’s mission to make health easier for that same group of people by redesigning primary care to offer them an additional layer of care.
“For more than 100 years, Northeast Sight Services has worked to improve quality of life and help maintain independence for people who are blind or have low vision,” said Amy Feldman, the organization’s director of development. “Working with Geisinger to bolster that effort in our community is a natural collaboration.”
Feldman and Northeast Sight Services vision resource manager Kristen Boyle presented to the 65 Forward staff, educating them on available resources for the blind and visually impaired, the wide spectrum of people with visual needs, proper practice for guiding and assisting patients, and even how the architecture and lighting in a space can affect patient experience.
The presentation featured live demonstrations of sighted guide—the dos and don’ts of assisting the blind and visually impaired—and passing around glasses specially designed to allow wearers to experience the effects of age-related eye conditions like macular degeneration and glaucoma.
“This training was incredibly helpful to our staff,” said Stephanie Pacovsky, operations manager for Geisinger 65 Forward locations in Kingston and Scranton. “Our health center already meets much of the criteria for being accessible to the visually impaired, but with this additional education, we will be better suited to care for our patients with visual needs.”
65 Forward staff physician James Tricarico, D.O., said he found the training valuable as well.
“It’s important for us to realize that not everyone who has low vision and needs help navigating our health center can be as easily identified as someone who might be using a cane or a service animal,” said Dr. Tricarico. “Knowing how to engage and guide our visually impaired patients will help us care for them as efficiently as we do their sighted counterparts.”
About Geisinger
Geisinger is among the nation’s leading providers of value-based care, serving 1.2 million people in urban and rural communities across Pennsylvania. Founded in 1915 by philanthropist Abigail Geisinger, the non-profit system generates $10 billion in annual revenues across 134 care sites - including 10 hospital campuses, and Geisinger Health Plan, with 600,000 members in commercial and government plans. The Geisinger College of Health Sciences educates more than 5,000 medical professionals annually and conducts more than 1,400 clinical research studies. With 26,000 employees, including 1,600 employed physicians, Geisinger is among Pennsylvania’s largest employers with an estimated economic impact of $14 billion to the state’s economy. On March 31, 2024, Geisinger became the first member of Risant Health, a new nonprofit charitable organization created to expand and accelerate value-based care across the country. Learn more at geisinger.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.
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