ICEE has been working to improve Aboriginal eye care for over a decade. In an exciting study, PhD student Anthea is working to help determine the prevalence and types of eye disease common in the Aboriginal communities of NSW, what people know about caring for their eyesight, and what prevents people from getting the eye care they need.

Natalie (pictured) is a participant of the study. She attended a study location in Toongabbie, NSW on the suggestion of a friend. When ICEE optometrist, Mitasha, was adding stronger lenses to the trial frame Natalie couldn’t believe her eyes, “is this how clearly everyone sees?” she said.

Natalie suffered from headaches and was having trouble reading to her four kids, but due to her busy schedule and tight budget she hadn’t been to an optometrist in 11 years. She was happy to participate and is excited about having a new pair of glasses. “I am going to be able to see my kids clearly, every bit of dirt on their faces! I am really looking forward to that,” Natalie said.

Sharon (pictured) is a midwife student who was finding that her studies were suffering due to headaches caused by her vision problem. The prescription for her glasses was out of date but it wasn’t convenient for her to get another pair. Since she participated in the study at Toongabbie, Sharon is looking forward to finishing her studies without vision difficulties.

In six locations around NSW participants like Natalie and Sharon are providing Anthea and Mitasha with valuable information that will ultimately help plan and prioritise effective, culturally appropriate delivery of vision and eye care to Aboriginal people.

The results of the study will also be used to advocate for effective eye care services to Aboriginal Australians in all regions of the country.

Professor Brian Layland, ICEE Director for Aboriginal Programs and the 2007 recipient of the Excellence in Health Service Delivery by a Non-Aboriginal Person, highlighted, “a study of this magnitude has not been conducted for over 30 years.”

ICEE is undertaking the NSW component of the National Indigenous Eye Health Survey led by the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA) in collaboration with the Vision CRC and supported with funding by the RANZCO Eye Foundation.