24th October 2022
Submission to the Select Committee into Child Development Services from Optometry Western Australia INC.
Optometry Western Australia represents more than 90% of registered Optometrists in Western Australia. We thank the Select Committee for their invitation to submit. Our response is the result of consulting our membership widely on the subject matter and is mostly a direct quote of their contributions or a preferred position as a consequence of detailed consulation.
| The role of Optometry | How Optometrists can contribute |
|---|---|
| The role of child development services on a child’s overall development, health and wellbeing. I think the role of these services is vital, especially for families that are unable to access services privately. It is a great option for allied health professionals and schools to use as a referral pathway for children needing extra support. I do believe that the waitlist for services is considerably long and this unfortunately means children can fall further behind whilst waiting for services. Vision plays such a critical role in the inter-sensory development for a child’s performance, academic success and confidence. Sadly it is not considered as a key area to be assessed or given referral priority to Optometrists by medical professionals , educational institutions or diagnostic centres. In our experience Optometric care in conjunction with other intervention therapists can definitely and positively influence both visual function and wellbeing for many children. A child’s vision is essential to learning and development. Often a child may be unaware or unable to communicate to parents that their vision is not normal. Eye |
If permitted to do so Community development Optometry can implement school screening services. Through training and education Optometrists can assist in raising awareness of common vision conditions to positively influence greater detection and prevention. |
| examination is necessary to identify children who have issues with their vision. Many parents are unaware that optometrists can assess children from any age. Extremely important. The ability for receptive language (which requires development and integration of hearing, vision and speech) and expressive language is essential to learning, self-esteem, acceptance, belonging and success both educationally and in life, Better self esteem and success reduces chances of delinquency and increases productivity. Reduces dependency on welfare and reduces down stream costs of supporting people and effects of crime |
Optometry already plays a vital role in advocating for change as it relates to screen time. To identify children at risk of disorders such as lazy eye whereby children are placed at high risk. To prevent life long disadvantage when identification and treatment in early childhood. |
| How child development services are delivered in both metropolitan and regional Western Australia | Not very well advertised as an option to see an optometrist. GPS and child health nurses refer to the ophthalmologist first it seems Many parents comment that the waiting time for children to be assessed by Paediatrician and other services is excessively long. Most of the referrals |
| level of care in Roebourne as | amin |
| The role of specialist medical colleges, universities and other training bodies in establishing sufficient workforce pathways. | I think the training organisations could provide experience working within a hospital/ government service environment, however that would need to be supported by our health system also providing significant employment to optometrists in hospital/ government services. |
| How to increase engagement with. Collaboration between government and non-government child development services including Aboriginal Controlled Organisations | Working in a previous role |
| who are short sighted, extremely long sighted or have medical issues. The bulk of children under performing or failing at school have more subtle vision and sight issues not screened for, not understood or tested for by GP’s or ophthalmology. Nether GP’s nor Ophthalmology have the time to do full binocular workups- take at least 45-60 minutes. | |
| How child development service models and programs outside of could be applied in Western Australia. | Optometry WA is aware of programs in NSW, QLD and Victoria. Our knowledge of the NSW program suggests there is follow up care required. Wherever there is follow up that is not incorporated into an existing scheme or service provider we believe there exists a higher rate of drop off, particularly in disadvantaged communities. We believe that QLD delivers a school-based program, (The Primary School Nurse Health Readiness program. The similarities between QLD and WA suggest that a program such as this may be the most successful way forward. Victoria runs the Melbourne Initial Screening Tests program (MIST) delivered by Maternal and Child Health Nurses. |
Optometry WA thanks the Select Committee for the opportunity to contribute to the knowledge base under consideration.
Yours Sincerely
—
Evan MacRae Chief Executive Officer Optometry Western Australia.