Ben Whitham was working as an orthoptist in the private sector when his name was passed on to Joanna Barton, a nurse manager at the Outback Eye Service, at a conference some years ago. Barton was looking for the right candidate to serve in some of Australia’s most marginalised regions, and Whitham, who had volunteered with remote communities in the mountains of Peru, seemed to fit the bill.
Taking a role in far northwestern New South Wales to deliver eye services to remote Indigenous communities was an incredibly rewarding change for Whitlam, made possible by funding from a partnership between Specsavers and The Fred Hollows Foundation.
“It was nice to find a job where I could make a difference helping communities who needed it,” Whitham says. “A lot of the patients I see are more than four hours away from their nearest major regional town, which creates barriers in accessing health services.
“Often, they present with issues that could have been prevented through earlier intervention. The funding enables us to improve the number of patients that we can get through and [pays] for the equipment needed to run a clinic.”
Whitham says the service has already provided more than 120 sight-saving surgeries in the first half of this year alone – more than its usual annual quota – in addition to other services that include paediatric eye care, referrals for ophthalmology treatments, and diabetic eye disease treatments such as laser and injections.
Dr Angus Turner, Director of Lions Outback Vision, performing cataract surgery on a patient in Broome, WA. Photo: Alan McDonald
Since Specsavers and the foundation’s partnership was formed more than a decade ago, Specsavers has donated more than $5m to the foundation’s work in providing eye health services to Indigenous communities, and hopes to donate a further $1m this year to help close the eye health gap.
One way Specsavers raises funds is through its limited-edition frames. Since 2014, it has created collections featuring the artwork of Indigenous artists; $25 from each pair sold goes to the foundation to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in remote communities have better access to life-changing surgery and high-quality eye care.
The initiative has involved a number of Indigenous artists over the years, including the late Ernabella artist Langaliki; the renowned painter and Gumatj leader from Northeast Arnhem Land, Peter Datjing Burarrwanga; and contemporary Aboriginal artist and proud Yuin woman Rheanna Lotter. This year, the frames feature artwork from proud Gurinji woman Sarrita King.
The donations are crucial. Access to reliable funding, Whitham says, allows for a “continuity of care”, particularly in communities where day-to-day lives are significantly affected by change in government, policy or service. The pandemic, he says, was one such change, with the team utilising telehealth to ensure patients had ongoing contact with their healthcare providers and access to repeat scripts, “to try to minimise any impact that could worsen their outcome”.
“We’ve had to play catch-up on all the cancellations from the Covid-19 lockdowns,” he says. “So many patients’ surgeries were delayed so we had to increase that side of our service.” The speed in which cataract surgery can be performed is just one reason for the growth of outreach eye care services in rural and regional Australia.
Orthoptist Ben Whitham with patient Tracey Walford at the Outback Eye Service operating in far North West NSW Photo: Ben Whitham
Dr Angus Turner, ophthalmologist and founder and director of Lions Outback Vision in Western Australia, says patients appreciate the treatments because they make an instant difference to their quality of life.
“It’s just a really gratifying vocation because patients are so grateful for restored vision, and as a speciality we are fortunate to have some dramatic and quick wins,” he says.
Turner’s “longstanding interest in delivery of health care to marginalised groups” and time spent researching outreach ophthalmology have enabled Lions Outback Vision to slowly improve its service offering over the years.
Funding from the foundation has supported the training of senior registrars in the unique challenges and rewards of rural work, and Specsavers’ contributions to the foundation have enabled Lions to expand its services further.
Telehealth collaboration with a team of visiting optometrists has halved waiting times for patients; a fly-in service from Rubibi (Broome) and Boorloo (Perth) to 10 locations offers monthly injections for diabetes-related blindness; and the Lions Outback Vision Van, a mobile facility, takes state-of-the-art equipment to 25 regional towns offering specialist services for which patients would otherwise have to travel to the city.
For each pair sold of Specsavers’ limited edition frames featuring the work of Indigenous artist Sarrita King, $25 goes to the the Fred Hollows Foundation to help fund its work in remote and regional Indigenous communities
Establishing a trusting relationship with the locals, many of whom have become regular patients, has also been an incredible by-product of the work.
“Building relationships with clinics on the ground is key to our work, so we’re really dependent on links with Aboriginal health workers on the ground,” Turner says.
“A great example is our connection in Fitzroy Crossing, who has been helping our service for over a decade. He knows where everyone else is, helps glue other itinerant staff together, and has developed his own eye care requirement, so he knows exactly how to explain it to new patients.”
The establishment of a regional eye care base in Broome – due to be completed in October – is the latest venture on the agenda. It will feature facilities for healthy eating programs, optometry services, and research and training provisions for future students “that can inform the way [Lions Outback Vision] delivers services for Aboriginal populations in collaboration with community”, Turner says.
“The distance and cost of providing [these services] from Perth was becoming unsustainable, so it’s exciting to consider the potential of this new hub thanks to the support of Specsavers and The Fred Hollows Foundation.
“Things like keeping a driver’s licence, seeing our family and enjoying our pastimes are all dependent on vision to some extent. We can all appreciate how precious sight is in our lives, and the need to provide services that can restore vision, or prevent blindness, is so important for regional and remote patients.”
Support this partnership and discover the Specsavers limited-edition collection in collaboration with The Fred Hollows Foundation, available exclusively in-store and online.
