Donate
US
Donate
Background Image

Joseph's Story

Who We Help

An Aboriginal elder, Joseph is a ranger and an integral part of the Rockhole Community near Katherine in Northern Territory, Australia. Joseph is diabetic, putting him at risk of diabetic retinopathy. And to make matters worse, he has cataract. 

 

Joseph lives in a remote Aboriginal community and he visited The Top End Ophthalmology Outreach Resources Project at Katherine Hospital for screening for diabetic retinopathy and cataract surgery.

 

“Since I have been taking care of my diabetes, I have lots more energy to be with my family. But I really want to get back to work. I was a ranger with the Mary River group. I want to get back on country again like when I was a ranger,” says Joseph.

 

Like Joseph, many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People's living in remote areas of Australia experience higher rates of illness and disease than those living in regional or urban areas. In fact, it comes as a surprise to many that despite being a “developed nation”, many people in remote Aboriginal communities of Australia don’t have access to clean water and fundamental sanitation services.

Eye health statistics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

This short animated video provides an audio visual snapshot of eye health statistics in an engaging format. The video outlines the leading causes of eye problems among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the prevalence of these conditions.

Diabetes and diabetic retinopathy - Indigenous Health - An estimated 37%25 of Aboriginal people have diabetes and 1 in 3 has diabetic retinopathy

Occurring at nearly five times the rate of non-Indigenous Australians, diabetes is the second leading cause of death among Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population. 

 

In 2017, diabetes was the second most common cause of death for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (Overview of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Status 2018).

 

In 2012-14, there were more than 50,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples hospitalised for diabetes, 90 percent of which were for Type 2 diabetes. During that same period, it was found that 11 percent of Indigenous adults were living with a form of diabetes, as well as nearly 5 percent who were at risk of developing diabetes.

 

Diabetes is a huge issue for Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population, making up 5.5 percent of the total burden of disease.

 

The vast majority of diabetes-related issues, like diabetic retinopathy, stem from cases of Type 2 diabetes (92 percent). Type 2 diabetes often occurs for years undetected in our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population.

 

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the main causes of vision impairment, behind uncorrected refractive error, cataract and age-related macular degeneration. DR makes up around 5.5 percent of vision impairment in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population but much less, 1.5 percent, for non-Indigenous Australians (National Eye Health Survey Report, 2017).

 

As many as 1 in 10 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults with diabetes have vision impairment due to DR. That’s twice as likely as non-Indigenous Australians.

 

Both Type 2 diabetes and DR can be prevented with careful treatment and support for those with diabetes, or at risk of developing it. 

 

Unfortunately, once the damage is done to the eye, it cannot be repaired, highlighting the importance of prevention.

 

In order to address avoidable blindness in Indigenous Australian communities, The Foundation commits to ensuring that a world-class eye health system is in place and accessible to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. We aim to achieve this by working in close collaboration with Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services, governments and the eye health and vision care sector.