WBRC Research Psychologist Retiring after 40 Years

Photo: Dr. Goodrich working with the NVT Light Panel

WBRC would like to congradulate Dr. Greggory Goodrich on his upcoming retirement.  Dr. Goodrich has worked at the Western Blind Rehabilitation Center at the VA Palo Alto Health Care system for over 40 years.  Dr. Goodrich received his PhD in Experimental Psychology in 1974 from Washington State University. He has been an active member of the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired serving as its president, and past president. He also has served as a member of the research advisory committee of Lighthouse International and a member of the national program advisory committee of the American Foundation for the Blind.

His dedication and commitment to ensuring service delivery excellence by conducting studies which support clinical rehabilitation programs never wavered during his tenure. Dr. Goodrich’s numerous publications chronicle his interests in low vision, technology, and mobility, as well as outcome assessments.  Dr. Gregory Goodrich was the recipient of the 2009 Olin E. Teague Award, a national award that recognizes contributions in an area of utmost importance to VA’s mission: the rehabilitation and improvement in the quality of life of war-injured Veterans. He received the award in conjunction with Dr. Glenn Cockerham, for their ground-breaking efforts in the care of Veterans injured in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

In 2011 Dr. Goodrich received the 'Tiresias' award from the International Society for Low Vision Research and Rehabilitation (ISLRR). The award was presented in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, during the 10th International Low Vision Conference. The award, the first time it was given, recognized Dr. Goodrich’s major role in the development of the field of rehabilitation and research on visual impairment.  The award is named after the mythical character Tiresias, who was blinded by Hera. To compensate him for his loss of vision, Zeus gave him the gift of prophecy. Tiresias is mentioned in the Odyssey, when Odysseus was sent to the underworld to consult him. All in all, an interesting bit of mythology is attributed to Dr. Goodrich.

Dr. Goodrich will be retiring the first week in October.  We at the WBRC wish him all the best in his well earned retirment!

WBRC Website Launches Update

Photo: A screen shot of the updated WBRC Website

The Western Blind Rehabilitation Center (WBRC) is proud to announce the launch of our new and improved website.  The new WBRC site includes updated information regarding the program and services provided, the setting, admissions, scheduling a visit, 2012 outcome measures, and research.  There are fresh photographs and links to the WBRC Blog, newsletter, and construction updates. WBRC hopes this site will serve as a gateway to care as well as a resource for Veterans, their family members and friends, medical and care providers, and other stake-holders. 

Please CLICK HERE to view the new WBRC Website

WBRC's Dr. Gregory Goodrich Recognized Internationally

Photograph of Dr. Goodrich accepting the 'Tiresias' Award at the

2011 ISLRR 10th Annual International Low Vision Conference

Dr. Gregory Goodrich, Supervisory Research Psychologist and Optometric Research Fellowship Coordinator, received the 'Tiresias' award from the International Society for Low Vision Research and Rehabilitation (ISLRR). The award was presented in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, during the 10th International Low Vision Conference. The award, the first time it was given, recognized Dr. Goodrich’s major role in the development of the field of rehabilitation and research on visual impairment.

The award will be given every three years and is named after the mythical character Tiresias, who was blinded by Hera. To compensate him for his loss of vision, Zeus gave him the gift of prophecy. Tiresias is mentioned in the Odyssey, when Odysseus was sent to the underworld to consult him. All in all, an interesting bit of mythology is attributed to him.

Dr. Gregory Goodrich is also the recipient of the 2009 Olin E. Teague Award, a national award that recognizes contributions in an area of utmost importance to VA’s mission: the rehabilitation and improvement in the quality of life of war-injured Veterans. He received the award in conjunction with Dr. Glenn Cockerham, for their ground-breaking efforts in the care of Veterans injured in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

NEW "GLASSES" BENEFIT RESEARCH

Image of a person wearing the Mobile Eye device, which are a pair of glasses with a camera above the eye, and clear angled lens with reflective coating placed over the right eye. Image care of the Mobile Eye Website.

New research methods at the Western Blind Rehabilitation Center using special glasses called The Mobile Eye™ will improve visual function, not only in injured combat troops, but also in Veterans with age-related eye disease or vision loss associated with strokes and other causes of vision loss following brain injury. Additionally, the knowledge gained should readily transfer to the benefit of both Veterans and civilians with age-related vision loss or vision loss due to stroke, falls, motor vehicle accidents, and other events causing brain injury and vision loss.

The Mobile Eye™ (Applied Sciences Laboratories, Bedford, MA) tracks and records the person’s eye movement and superimposes it on a videotaped view of the environment recording both for review and analysis. This al­lows researchers and clinicians to “see what the person is looking at” and to do sophisticated analysis about the amount of time any object was fixated on, directions of scan, and to identify how the individual manages areas of field loss.

Understanding how well the individual manages their areas of vision loss is critical to understanding how they inter­act with the world around them. This is important because it leads to a better understanding of the person’s visual functioning and the effectiveness of rehabilitation. It should also lead to more effective rehabilitation therapies.

For the Full Article Please CLICK HERE and Scroll to Page 18

To be directed to the Mobile Eye Website CLICK HERE

For a link to a video demonstrating the Mobile Eye CLICK HERE