Emy Hurtig

About Emy Hurtig

Emy is a licensed occupational therapist with a Master’s degree in Occupational Therapy. She works clinically as a vision rehabilitation specialist at the Regional Centre for Deafblindness in Region Skåne, Sweden. She also contributes her expertise in vision rehabilitation to the National Knowledge Centre for Deafblindness (Nkcdb), which, commissioned by the National Board of Health and Welfare, works to develop and disseminate knowledge to professionals in the field of deafblindness.

Emy’s research interests are rooted in several years of clinical experience and in encounters with people living with combined vision and hearing loss, including deafblindness. The ability to independently navigate and move around one’s surroundings is essential for taking an active part in everyday life and activities.

People with combined vision and hearing loss or deafblindness have the same fundamental need to be able to orient themselves and move independently in order to participate in the activities and contexts that are meaningful to them. However, there is currently limited evidence and few established methods to guide professionals in providing this type of rehabilitation. Her Master’s thesis showed that the Swedish national standard for orientation and mobility (O&M) for people with visual impairment or blindness can also be used with people who are deafblind. However, many aspects need to be adapted to the individual’s specific needs and circumstances.

As part of a development project in Region Skåne, a practical guide was developed to support professionals in adapting the national O&M standard for people with deafblindness.

In her doctoral research, Emy aims to evaluate the usability of this guide from both the patient and professional perspectives. She also aims to contribute new knowledge about rehabilitation interventions in orientation and mobility for people with deafblindness in a Swedish context.

The overall hope of this doctoral research is that people with deafblindness will have greater opportunities to develop their orientation and mobility skills, and that rehabilitation interventions will be delivered with high quality and in a consistent and equitable manner, regardless of which professional provides the intervention.