Primary Eye Care Needs and Services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Populations across Queensland: A Users Perspective

The ocular health status of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (A&TSI) population is significantly poorer than that of the wider community. This study examined the primary eye care needs of, and services to, A&TSI people from an indigenous perspective. The findings reported here are based on questionnaire-based interviews of 292 A&TSI people from three urban and three rural communities in Queensland. The level of eye care services to A&TSI people failed to meet the perceived needs of most communities, this deficiency being greater in rural than urban communities. Limited physical accessibility of optometric services, cultural barriers and education were identified as the three main issues contributing to the low utilisation rate of currently available services by A&TSI people. These findings indicate unmet needs within A&TSI communities in Queensland, both for culturally appropriate and accessible primary eye care services and for education about eye health issues