Eye health measures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people 2024: interactive data

The proportion of First Nations people who reported eye or vision problems: Measure 1.1.2

Latest data

Based on the latest available National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS) data, in 2018–19, nearly 4 in 10 First Nations people (38%, or 307,300 people) reported long-term eye or sight problems (ABS 2019).

By remoteness

In 2018–19, the proportion of First Nations people who self-reported eye or sight problems fell as remoteness increased, from 42% in Major cities to 27% in Very remote areas (Figure 3 – remoteness).

By jurisdiction

In 2018–19, the prevalence of self-reported eye or sight problems for First Nations people was highest in South Australia (49%) and lowest in the Northern Territory (29%) (Figure 3 – jurisdiction).

By age and sex

In 2018–19, the prevalence of self-reported eye or sight problems was higher for First Nations females than for First Nations males (Figure 3 – population groups). Self-reported eye or sight problems was highest for First Nations people aged 55–64, 65–74 and 75 and over (around 93%), compared with 10% for First Nations people aged 0–14 (Figure 3 – population groups).

Time trend

Since 2001, the age-standardised proportion of First Nations people who had an eye or sight problem rose from 47% to 49% in 2018–19, while it remained stable for non-Indigenous Australians at around 52% across this period (Figure 3 – time trend). After adjusting for age, the proportion of First Nations people with an eye or sight problem was similar to that for non-Indigenous Australians (49% and 52%, respectively). 

Figure 3: Self-reported eye or sight problems: interactive data