All our knowledge at your disposal
SNABLIND can provide you with training and specialist knowledge about low vision and all other relevant areas. We also run a specialist library. In addition, we carry out research into visual impairments, blindness, hearing and visual impairments and deafblindness and keep lists of trained specialists. If you are looking for specialist knowledge in the field of visual impairments, you are in the right place.
As the umbrella organisation for Swiss charities for the blind, SNABLIND offers a range of services (training, specialist knowledge of low vision, research etc.) for specialists, member organisations, schools, invalidity insurance (IV) bodies and businesses and for you.
We offer around 80 training courses every year. These enable specialists to provide support to blind and visually impaired people which is based on the very latest knowledge and findings. In addition, you can take the Advanced Federal Professional Examination to become a Rehabilitation Expert for People with Vision Impairment and Blindness or a Guide Dog Mobility Instructor. Our specialist library contains more than 3000 different items and is a widely used source of knowledge. Our research department focuses on fundamental aspects of visual impairment, blindness and hearing and visual impairment. We also run the Low Vision Centre, which advises visually impaired people, ophthalmologists, opticians and other specialists on complex sight problems.
«Through our research projects, we aim to show how the quality of life of people with visual impairment can be ensured. The studies are practice-oriented so that the results can be implemented in the education and training of professionals.»
Vivianne Visschers, Research Manager
Courses and training
Specific expertise and ongoing training are needed to be able to provide visually impaired, blind, hearing and visually impaired and deafblind people with competent assistance and support. For this reason, we offer a wide range of different training opportunities for specialists.
Our courses are aimed at the specialists in our member organisations and at people who work in the healthcare system, homes for the elderly, early learning settings, schools and advice centres run by other organisations.
Specialist library
Anyone looking for information on a specific subject relating to blindness, visual impairment, hearing and visual impairment or deafblindness is sure to find what they need in our specialist library in St. Gallen, which houses more than 3000 items. The material is available to anyone with an interest in the subject, but is specifically aimed at specialists in the field of visual impairment.
Our library holds more than 3000 items in German, French, Italian and, in some cases, English. We have only a limited selection of tactile picture books and Braille literature.
Low vision and optical aids
People with a visual impairment have sight problems that cannot be rectified with normal glasses or with operations. In addition to their visual acuity, other visual functions such as the perception of slight contrasts, glare, the field of vision and the perception of colour are often affected. All these restrictions are described using the term “low vision”. Low vision rehabilitation involves working with the affected person to find solutions that will allow them to live as independently as possible.
One way of ensuring that this is successful is to provide an extensive range of optical aids. These include magnifying devices, which range from a special pair of magnifying spectacles to an electronic screen reader. In addition, new vision strategies are developed to enable people to read small fonts in newspapers, for example, even with reduced vision. High-quality anti-glare lighting is also an important aid.
Research
Living with a visual impairment, blindness or a hearing and visual impairment is an issue that concerns many in our society. This is why we have a research centre that investigates fundamental aspects of visual impairment, blindness, deafblindness and hearing and visual impairment. It identifies gaps in our knowledge and fills them using the results of scientific research projects.
Specialist groups
We provide address lists of professionals qualified in the various specialist areas of visual impairment. The specialists have joined together in specialist groups.
The corresponding lists serve as points of reference for you to contact them directly. The lists do not claim to be complete.
Only those professionals who have agreed to the publication of their data in accordance with the Data Protection Ordinance are listed here.
