S P R I N G

2 0 1 6

Children with

Other Health Impairments

Desiree Nix

General Characteristics
General characteristics for
children with Other Health
Impairments are: feeling
fatigue, mobility issues,
coordination difficulties,
limited strength (muscle
weakness), missing school
often, being tardy
frequently, stamina, and/or
the inability to focus for
long periods of time.

The only disability in life is a bad

attitude.
- Scott Hamilton

Federal Definition of OHI:

Based off the website Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) the federal definition of
Other Health Impairments (OHI) is:

having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to

environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational
environment, that--

(i) Is due to chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder
or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition,
hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, and
Tourette syndrome; and
(ii) Adversely affects a childs educational performance.

Although the a student may face these health issues in order for them to qualify as OHI eligible, the
childs health issue must effect their educational environment. If their health issue does not affect
their education environment, such as causing the child to have limited strength, energy, or
awareness, then the child does not qualify as OHI eligible.

Classroom Accommodations:

Common classroom accommodations for students with OHI are

having note takers for the student, in class voice recordings of
what was taught in class that day, flexible attendance, extended
time for tests, creating a classroom environment that lessens
fatigue and injury, technology to enhance the students learning,
and rest times throughout the day.

THE LOREM IPSUMS

SUMMER 2016

Strengths of Children With OHI, Instructional

Strategies, and Ongoing Communication With
Parents!

Based off the accommodations for

students with Other Health Impairments, some
possible strengths of OHI are having rest time
during school hours, reduction of school work,
having others take notes for you, and extended
time during exams.

or his/her parents prior knowledge of

deadlines and tests so that the parents can plan
their childs doctors appointments and/or
medical procedures around significant dates in
the childs academics.
Some effective methods for ongoing
communication with parents are keeping the
parents updated on how their child is doing in
class. The teacher can do this by calling,
emailing, or setting up a meeting with the
childs parents. The teacher can also send daily
or weekly folders of the students work and
progress in the class.

Instructional strategies beneficial in

instructing students with this disability succeed
in school by being flexible with the child. The
child can be successful in his or her learning by
making information clear to the student,
keeping the information given to the student
well-organized, give the student a goal to
accomplish each day, and by giving the student

Reference List:

Disability Rights Wisconsin. (2007, November 16). Health Impairments Accommodations within
School. Retrieved February 01, 2016, from http://www.disabilityrightswi.org/archives/66
Grice, K. (2002). Eligibility under IDEA for Other Health Impaired Children (1st ed., pp. 7-12).
Institute of Government. Retrieved from
http://sogpubs.unc.edu/electronicversions/slb/slbsum02/article2.pdf

Hallahan, D.P., Kauffman, J.M., & Pullen, P.C. (2015).

Exceptional Learners (13th ed). Upper Saddle River; NJ, Pearson, Chapter 14 (OHI).
IDEA Building The Legacy of IDEA 2004. (n.d.). Retrieved February 01, 2016, from
http://idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/,root,regs,300,A,300%2E8,

National Association of Special Education Teachers. (n.d.). NASET.org Home

Page. Retrieved February 01, 2016, from https://www.naset.org/2278.0.html

Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities. (2013). Health Impairments Project IDEAL.
Retrieved February 01, 2016, from http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/health-impairments/

University of Washington. (n.d.). Health Impairments. Retrieved February 01, 2016, from
http://www.washington.edu/doit/health-impairments