Other Health Impairment (OHI)

According to the Texas Education Agency (2019) an Other Health Impairment means "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 child’s educational performance."

Common traits/characteristics 

According to the National Association of Special Education Teachers (2023) characteristics of other health impairments may include:

• Fatigue

• Issues related to mobility

• Deficits in attention span

• Challenges in physical coordination

• Difficulty in maintaining their stamina

Educational challenges:

One of the biggest things to be aware of is that the challenges of each student will vary depending on the impairment and the degree of the impairment. While challenges will vary, the school environment should be accessible and the least restrictive to encourage students to try new and challenging things.

Tips/ recommendations for teachers:

• Give students the opportunity to have more time for assignments

• Contribute to an organized classroom environment that helps students to develop organizational skills

• The teacher can also seat the student close to the teacher to frequently assist the student at various times of the day.