Essay Reduce the Rate of Eye Disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) – Medical Science Assignment Help

Assignment Task:

Task:

Overview

The purpose of this program is to reduce the rate of eye disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) adults older than 40 living in Remote and Very Remote regions in the state of Victoria. Rates of eye disease and injury are disproportionately high among ATSI Australians (1). The prevalence of visual impairment and blindness is approximately 3 times higher in Indigenous Australians compared with the general Australian population and it has been estimated that around 90% of vision loss in this group is preventable (2). Yet treatment coverage for common eye conditions is disproportionately low in remote Indigenous communities (3). Drawing on principles of sustainability, partnership, the social determinants of health as well as the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, this program plan employs a mix of strategies that target upstream, midstream and downstream factors to achieve program objectives. Objectives of the program are to increase provision of eye exams and treatment coverage, and to eliminate trachoma. Strategies to improve treatment coverage are to create a mobile treatment facility providing subsidised services, to hire Indigenous Health Liaison Officers and to provide cultural safety training to all healthcare workers. To achieve the objective of eliminating trachoma, a health education campaign and improvements to local water facilities will be carried out. Finally, in order to increase the provision of eye exams, an SMS reminder service will be established.

Program Design Needs Assessment

Conditions affecting eye health can lead to blindness or visual impairment. More than 13 million Australians suffer from one or more vision disorders including 93% of Australians over the age of 55. However, as illustrated in figure 1, prevalence of vision loss is disproportionately high among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. Despite lower rates of vision impairment during childhood (3), eye disease and injury increases substantially as ATSI people age and is the most common chronic health condition (3) in this population. • ATSI people experience 2.8 times the rate of vision loss as non-Indigenous Australians (1) • The most common causes of visual impairment are refractive error, diabetic retinopathy and cataract (3) • Trachoma remains an endemic problem in some Aboriginal communities, making Australia the only developed country which has not eliminated Trachoma (2)