Orientation and Mobility Training

We currently have four certified O&M instructors. The goal of orientation and mobility training is to teach safe, efficient and effective travel skills to people of all ages. “Orientation” refers to the ability to know where you are and where you want to go, whether you’re moving from one room to another or walking downtown for a shopping trip. "Mobility" refers to the ability to move safely, efficiently, and effectively from one place to another, such as being able to walk without tripping or falling, cross streets, and use public transportation.

An Orientation and Mobility (O&M) Specialist provides instruction that can help you develop or relearn the skills and concepts you need to travel safely and independently within your home and in the community. O&M Specialists provide services across the life span, teaching infants and children in pre-school and school programs, as well as adults in a variety of community-based and rehabilitation settings.

An O&M Specialist can work with you to plan an individualized program of instruction that reflects your personal needs, skills, and goals, which can include any or all of the following goals:

•             Getting around safely inside your home
•             Learning the route to your mailbox
•             Taking a walk around the block
•             Shopping independently
•             Using public transportation to get to work
•             Traveling around the world independently

iChallenged provides O&M instruction on a one-to-one basis, and can take place in the community where you live and/or work. By conducting O&M training in the client’s own community and their own home or, by special arrangements, in a special area such as the campus of the college or university where the student may be newly enrolled we can help maximize the benefit to the instruction provided.

Orientation and Mobility program process

•             On referral, the O/M specialist makes initial contact with the client by telephone
•             An Initial Evaluation Questionnaire is completed (30-60 minutes)
•             Questionnaire covers the client’s medical history, living situation, former training and future O/M goals
•             Once questionnaire has been completed, the training assignment is formalized
•             Once a client/instructor team has been formed, the instructor will meet with the client and review the Initial Evaluation Questionnaire with them. The instructor, through a combination of conversation with the client and observation, will develop a work plan and establish the number of required hours to accomplish the goals of the client.
•             The instructor will submit their work plan and required hours of training for approval
•             Once the work plan and hours of training has been approved, the instructor will set up a training schedule with the client. The instructor will be responsible for
ensuring that the client’s training proceeds smoothly and that they adhere to the work plan and approved hours of training.  The instructor will be responsible for immediately reporting any issues that arise that may impede progress or cause the training to exceed the allotted training hours required to accomplish established goals.  Any reported issues will be forwarded to the client’s counselor for resolution and/or hours adjustments
•             The instructor will provide progress reports to the client’s counselor at pre- determined points of training. The instructor will provide a report upon completion of the work plan.

iChallenged, Inc. strives to provide timely, comprehensive Orientation and Mobility training to its clients.  It is the only organization offering itinerate Orientation and Mobility training in the Detroit metropolitan area. We provide training only in the discipline required/desired by the client. This is a different approach from those being used in destination and fixed training programs where a client is forced to enroll in multiple disciplines in order to receive training in the area they truly require/desire.

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