Denise Caruso is a Low Vision Therapist and Vision Rehabilitation Therapist for the New Hampshire Association for the Blind and is NHAB’s main representative on the Seacoast.
Most of Denise Caruso’s clients are seniors (average age is 75 +) with low vision, many of whom live in retirement communities and independent living facilities. She has about 50 or more clients from the Seacoast up through North Conway and out to Concord where NHAB is headquartered. (Many clients are also still in their homes. A primary reason for our service is to allow individuals to remain independent.
Much of Caruso’s training in low-vision rehabilitation has been hands on. She grew up outside Pittsburgh, studied marketing in college, and worked in fashion merchandising. She changed careers after moving to New England in the mid-1980s, becoming first an optician, then earning certification as an ophthalmic technician, receiving training at the Lighthouse in New York City. She joined NHAB in 2001.
What’s the most common cause of vision loss among your clients?
Most of my clients have lost vision due to one of four conditions: macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, or cataracts—and sometimes a combination of those conditions. These are the four diagnoses that I usually see. This is not to say that there are not other eye diseases that can result in low vision.
How do you help your clients?
Direct services include: Social Work, low-vision services, rehabilitation therapy, orientation & mobility training, assistive technology service, educational services, volunteer services, public education. Braille and audio transcription services are also available. Mostly, though, I help clients with low vision daily living skills. Initially, I talk with them and find out what their needs and goals are; what they are still doing and what do they want to work on. I focus on the positive and create ways to enhance or reinvent essential tasks.
How do clients find their way to you?
Clients come to me from a variety of sources, including recommendations from physicians, family members, friends, and the clients themselves.
What do you enjoy most about your work?
My job is so satisfying: I love meeting with my clients. Oftentimes, I learn more from them than they do from me-a lot of life lessons. It’s really a give and take relationship. Older folks are so interesting and I think we should all spend more time with them. They’ve lived through so much and I always take time to be personal with them. I have one client who worked for Raytheon who worked on the Apollo project.
How do you help clients the most?
I don’t think its one specific thing. If I can go in and enable a client to succeed in a certain task that makes them feel more positive, that’s the most important thing I offer. An example might be getting them special lighting or magnification devices than enable them to read the newspaper. Initially it takes practice to use the magnification aids but I find that most individuals grasp the concept quickly.
Is reading the most pressing need?
It’s a large part of it, yes. We have illuminated magnification the often helps to read mail, the newspaper etc. If you’ve been a reader and now can’t even read large print, that’s frustrating. I also make clients aware of New Hampshire’s Talking Book program and will sometimes leave an application or fill it out with them.
What constitutes a successful client relationship?
If I can leave them feeling optimistic and have assisted them in accomplishing a task, and I have a good feeling, then I think I’ve been successful.
New Hampshire Association for the Blind (NHAB)
Seacoast Office
127 Parrott Avenue
Portsmouth, NH 03801
603.431.9401