Psychosocial implications of blindness and low vision in students of a school for children with blindness

OBJECTIVE To find out the psychosocial implications of blindness and low vision in students of blind school Bahawalpur. METHODS A cross sectional descriptive study was carried out in Higher Secondary School for blind, Bahawalpur after getting approval from Institutional review board of Quaid-e-Azam Medical College, Bahawalpur and Principal of Blind School, Bahawalpur. Forty willing students filled a customized questionnaire, consisting of questions about logistic variables and questions regarding areas of satisfaction. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 18. RESULTS Out of 40, 55% (22/40) of them were found depressed (as assessed through DSM-lV), 50% (20/40) were having difficulty in making new contact but 52.5% (21/40) were satisfied with family care. CONCLUSION Sixty percent (24/40) of blind school children experienced difficulty in their life. This study showed that blindness or low vision does have psychological implications like feeling of guilt, anxiety, sadness & depression.