Indigenous Eye Health

Welcome to the June 2019 edition of the Trachoma eBulletin. It's been a busy start to 2019 for the trachoma team with the Close the Gap for Vision by 2020: Strengthen & Sustain National Conference held on 14 & 15 March in Alice Springs.Read the full June 2019 eBulletin below.

Eye health is one of few areas where real progress is being made to ‘Close the Gap’ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians by 2020.

Welcome to the first 'Check Today, See Tomorrow' eBulletin for 2019. We have had a busy start to 2019 and 2018 closed with a flurry of activities. The Victorian Aboriginal Community Services Association Limited (VACSAL) Senior Aboriginal Football and Netball Carnival was in October, World Diabetes Day activities in November and our Close the Gap for Vision by 2020: Strengthen & Sustain National Conference held in Alice Springs in March 2019.Read the full May 2019 eBulletin below.

Indigenous Eye health (IEH), the University of Melbourne and Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory (AMSANT) co-hosted the Close the Gap for Vision by 2020: Strengthen & Sustain National Conference 2019 at the Alice Springs Convention Centre on March 14 and 15 2019.

The announcement today by Opposition leader Bill Shorten of $13 million to support Indigenous eye health is warmly welcomed. This was included in a packet of $115 million to cover a range of health issues in Indigenous communities including youth suicide, rheumatic heart disease, sexual health and smoking.

Indigenous Eye Health at Melbourne University have prepared jurisdictional snapshots of some of the key data available in Indigenous Eye Health Measures in Australia 2017, released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in April 2018.

Professor Hugh Taylor recently spoke with the Anangu Lands Paper Tracker about eye health, ways to keep your eyes healthy and strong and the recent launch of the 2018 Annual Update on the Implementation of the Roadmap to Close the Gap for Vision.https://www.papertracker.com.au/radio/hugh-taylor-closing-the-gap-on-vision/

VIEW THE 2018 ANNUAL UPDATE  REPORTThe 2018 Annual Update on the Implementation of The Roadmap to Close the Gap for Vision was launched on Monday 19 November at the 50th Annual Scientific Congress of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists in Adelaide by Shane Mohor, CEO of the Aboriginal Health Council of South Australia and Professor Hugh Taylor, Head of Indigenous Eye Health at Melbourne University. Dr Heather Mack, President-Elect of RANZCO hosted the launch.

The fight to end preventable blindness among Indigenous Australians has made “unbelievable strides” in the last decade, but the relentless push for reform continues.

Professor Hugh Taylor AC is the founder of Indigenous Eye Health at Melbourne University, and is fighting to close the gap of preventable blindness among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders by 2020. He is this week’s Changemaker.

Following the success of the Close the Gap for Vision by 2020 national conferences in 2017 and 2018, Indigenous Eye Health and co-host Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory (AMSANT), are pleased to invite you to save the date for the 2019 national conference.The Close the Gap for Vision by 2020 – National Conference 2019 will be held in Alice Springs, Northern Territory on Thursday 14 and Friday 15 March 2019 at the Alice Springs Convention Centre.

Laureate Professor Hugh Taylor used the fourth Jean McCaughey Oration to outline a reduction in adult Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander blindness rates from six to three times the non-Indigenous population. The Oration recognises the contribution of the late doctors Jean and Davis McCaughey to social justice and human rights.

A new national program will be established to support development of an electronic eye health record and ensure people registered with the National Diabetes Services Scheme get regular reminders to have their eyes checked.Minister Hunt media release Media Release Background

In South Australian the Trachoma Elimination Program is coordinated by Country Health SA Local Health Network in partnership with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations in at-risk communities. The first 4 months of the year have been busy as we engage with our communities to develop localised programs. Nganampa Health Council commenced trachoma and trichiasis screening on the APY Lands in March, assisted by Aboriginal Community Services with the roll out of their environmental and health promotion activities.

On the 28 February, the Indigenous Eye Health (IEH) team in partnership with Prime Minister & Cabinet (PM&C) and the Centre for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) held a workshop in Alice Springs to bring together various stakeholders from across the Northern Territory to discuss environmental health aspects of the SAFE Strategy. 19 government and non-government organisations were represented at the workshops – including the NT Departments of Health, Education, Housing and Infrastructure.

Conference Report

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has released Indigenous eye health measures 2017 as an online presentation of the latest Indigenous eye health data.

Indigenous eye health is a good news story for closing the gap

The Journal of the American Medical Association have published a new article using data from the National Eye Health Survey on the Prevalence and Causes of Unilateral Vision Impairment and Blindness in Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

Close the Gap for Vision by 2020: Striving TogetherNational Conference 2018

Great achievement by Congress in winning Australian Human Resources Institute awards for Indigenous employment.

Democratising Indigenous DataProfessor Ian Anderson AO, Deputy Secretary Indigenous at the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet recently delivered the 2017 Menzies Oration on Democratising Indigenous Data.

The MBS Item 715/12325 Eye Check Card is designed to support vision screening for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people by outlining the key steps required for GPs and other health professionals providing eye and vision screening for MBS Item 715 and diabetic retinopathy screening for MBS Item 12325.

Blindness is a devastating disability that impacts disproportionately on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, but the good news is that some solid progress is being made

Indigenous eye health is improving, but more needs to be done.

The head of IEH, Professor Hugh Taylor, talks about the importance of diabetic retinopathy screening and the latest data for the related Medicare item.

Indigenous Eye Health (IEH) engaged Ninti One to conduct an independent evaluation of the Trachoma Health Promotion Programme (THPP) in six remote Aboriginal communities in Central Australia.

Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet and The Fred Hollows Foundation have developed a visually engaging health practice resource that complements the more detailed written information available on the HealthInfoNet dedicated eye health website. The video and resources are free for educational purposes.

The Paul Ramsay Foundation will invest more than $1.5 million from now until 2020 to support Indigenous Eye Health in their work.

Sean Choolburra LIVE on Big Breaky- CAAMA Radio, NT

Interview by CAAMA Radio, NT

By Rosamond Gilden and Carol A HoldenIndigenous Eye Health, The University of Melbourne

New funding announced

On 25 July 2016, Indigenous Eye Health at the University of Melbourne hosted ‘Non-mydriatic retinal photography - a roundtable in preparation for new MBS items for people with diabetes’. This meeting brought together representatives from peak national bodies across Australia, covering Indigenous health, eye care and diabetes, to discuss approaches and actions necessary to support the successful introduction of new Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items for non- mydriatic retinal photography (NMRP) for people with diabetes. Participants were provided with updates including currently available information and resources, discussed the barriers and solutions to increase diabetic retinopathy (DR) screening rates in Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS) and mainstream practices, and identified some of the next steps for implementation. Thirty-one people attended the meeting representing fourteen organisations.Download Report

Andrew Trounson, University of Melbourne

Indigenous Eye Health and Katherine West Health Board have partnered together with Aboriginal comedian Sean Choolburra for the upcoming Katherine West Health Board Health Fest 2016. Sean will be conducting school and evening comedy performances in eight communities in the Katherine West region from 17th to 28th September. The festival promotes keeping faces clean to stop trachoma and tobacco smoking reduction.

Hugh Taylor, University of Melbourne; Emma Stanford, University of Melbourne, and Fiona Lange, University of Melbourne

Below you will find our three new Trachoma 'Clean Faces, Strong Eyes' Hip Hop Music Videos.