MDS Alert
Reader Question:
Judge Partial Blindness by Visual Ability
Published on Wed May 08, 2019 
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Question: One of my residents is blind in one eye but has lived for decades using only the healthy eye. I am not sure how to code item B1000 (Vision) because none of the descriptors seem to fit this resident’s situation. He can see well but is also completely blind. Colorado Subscriber Answer: Instead of evaluating the resident’s vision by his eyes’ physical function, the RAI Manual says to judge sight through how well he can see. So even though your resident is blind in one eye, if he can see fine detail, like regular-sized print in a book, you should choose 0 (Adequate) in item B1000 on the MDS.
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