Abstract

FR.19.07

Eye Health in the transitional nation of Timor-Leste

Earnest J.¹, Finger R. P.^1,2
1Centre for International Health, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia; ²Department of Ophthalmology, Bonn University, Bonn, Germany

Objective: To collect data on the state of eye health in East Timor, the world’s newest nation. The country currently has the worst health indicators in Southeast Asia and is among the poorest in the region. This study collected data on subjectively assessed general health, including eye health, in East Timor.
Methods: Information on self-assessed state of eye health was recorded in 1200 Timorese in six out of 13 districts, using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was administered to heads of households, who had been selected using a multi-stage random cluster sampling procedure.
Results: A large proportion of respondents reported current (23%) or previous (25%) eye disease or a recent decrease in vision (26%). Reported levels of most other health problems were lower. The most often reported eye disease was night blindness, followed by cataract. No felt need and distance to (eye) health facilities were the most often reported barriers to service utilization.
Conclusions: The study revealed that there is a dearth of detailed research on the state of eye health, blindness and visual impairment in East Timor. It is often difficult to determine, without a specialist eye examination, the etiology of a complaint. A considerable proportion of the population may benefit from additional Vitamin A supplementation. More and more decentralised eye care services need to be made available to the Timorese population.

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