ORVIS: A Directory of Tools for Vision Rehabilitation
Funded between 2013-2015 (Marie-Chantal Wanet-Defalque) and since 2016 (Walter Wittich)
Goal
The ORVIS infrastructure aims to facilitate the development and provision of measurement tools whose validity and reliability have been demonstrated. These tools must be available in French, or in French and English, and be appropriate for use with the visually impaired population, by researchers or by stakeholders. They must allow the functional, perceptual, cognitive and psychological assessment of the population concerned.
Description
The ORVIS – Outils pour la Réadaptation de la VISion – infrastructure lists and documents the tools that meet these criteria, develops or adapts others, then makes them known via an electronic platform.
The home page presents the mandate and organization of the directory and then offers, in addition to access to the files, a glossary, a link to a page devoted to tags relating to the interpretation of coefficients as well as the list of communications of which ORVIS has been the subject.
The tools are organized into categories inspired by the International Classification of Functioning (ICF). The directory lists more than 50 tools, with descriptive sheets presenting their characteristics, components and metric properties as documented in the scientific literature. It can also provide a brief description of the tool and a reference to a file listed in a reliable external source. ORVIS data sheets are available online free of charge and are fully accessible to the visually impaired.
The directory is guided by an advisory committee, which oversees orientations, tool selection criteria, the form and content of the sheets, and the communication plan.
Impact
The ORVIS directory, specific to clients living with visual impairment, increases the accessibility of information on valid instruments for researchers and clinicians active in the fields of visual impairment and rehabilitation in the French-speaking world. The tools it lists promote the conduct of quality studies as well as the improvement of the care of users in visual rehabilitation, as well as their autonomy and social integration.
Statistics compiled using Google Analytics between November 1, 2015, the date the directory was put online, and September 15, 2025, show more than 108,000 pages viewed by some 70,000 users, nearly half of whom are located in France.
Accessibility
ORVIS is accessible to ORVIS . Its information complies with the Quebec government’s standard for accessibility for all persons with or without disabilities.
Infrastructure administrator
Walter Wittich, PhD , FAAO , CLVT, School of Optometry, University of Montreal – CRIR Researcher – CRIR Site Manager: INLB and MAB-Mackay
Contact information
Walter Wittich – walter.wittich@umontreal.ca
Amélie Desnoyers – amelie.desnoyers.inlb@ssss.gouv.qc.ca
Hyperlinks to the directory – French only: Répertoire ORVIS – Extranet – Institut Nazareth et Louis-Braille
Funding
Vision Sciences Research Network (VSRN), Institut Nazareth et Louis-Braille (INLB) du CISSS de la Montérégie-Centre
