Children's Eye Health Education Program in Outback Communities

About the program

The Children's Eye Health Education Program in Outback Communities is a collaborative national initiative to help improve eye health outcomes for children in rural and outback communities of Australia who experience less than equitable access to healthcare. Indigenous children are an important part of this group.

The Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA) and Merck Sharp & Dohme are proud to announce a partnership to help reduce preventable vision loss in outback Australia through improved eye health education. The program seeks to increase the chances of early diagnosis and treatment. It will complement other work CERA is undertaking to better understand the causes and consequences of childhood vision loss in outback and Indigenous communities.

Providing leadership to address the challenges of outback services in eye health, the program will work directly with local health, education and community service providers throughout Australia.

The program is currently at a preliminary stage, researching existing materials and projects. The schedule is to produce deliverables in early to mid 2009, with production, trials and evaluations of materials occurring in the interim.

A stakeholders meeting on 28th March 2008 provided an overview of the program and generated initial discussions with organisations that are involved in consultation and collaboration. 
 
CERA is proud to have the support of Merck Sharp & Dohme, one of Australia’s largest prescription pharmaceutical companies with a long history of helping people in resource-poor settings. In 2007 Merck Sharp & Dohme celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Mectizan Donation Program, the longest running medical donation program in history which aims to eradicate river blindness around the world. 

Further information

Please contact Kathy Fotis, Project Officer on +61 3 9929 8917 or email: kfotis@unimelb.edu.au

Stakeholders

Merck Sharp & Dohme
Aboriginal Health & Medical Research Council
Department of Health – Government of Western Australia
Fred Hollows Foundation, The
Guide Dogs SA.NT
International Centre for Eyecare Education
National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation
Ngaanyatjarra Health Service
Northern Territory Educational Resource Centre for the Vision Impaired
Optometrists Association Australia
Queensland University of Technology – School of Optometry
Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists
Rural Health Education Foundation
Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children
Victorian College of Optometry
Vision 2020 Australia