Using geographic information systems to map eye care service distribution in rural and remote Western Australia

Many rural residents face barriers to eye care access. Government workforce data show a maldistribution of eye care providers in Western Australia however, no detailed information is available on regional coverage within the state. This study aimed to identify and map all eye care services in rural and remote Western Australia and to calculate the regional workforce rates.

A survey was sent to all optometry and ophthalmology practices in rural and remote Western Australia with questions on practitioner and equipment availability. Information on visiting services was captured directly through organisations as well as the survey. Geographic information systems were used to map service locations, calculate coverage of services relative to the population, and calculate full-time equivalent (FTE) per 100,000 of the population for each profession.

A total of 58 optometry practices, 8 ophthalmology practices, 113 visiting optometry services and 43 visiting ophthalmology services in rural and remote Western Australia were identified and mapped. Most of the population (97.2%) lived within 100 km of an eye care service. Overall FTE per 100,000 for optometry and ophthalmology were 12.1 and 2.4, respectively. Regional FTE per 100,000 ranged from 2.1 to 19.5 for optometry and 0 to 4.2 for ophthalmology.

The results show broad coverage of visiting services but highlights regional discrepancies in optometry and ophthalmology workforce rates, with several regions failing to meet FTE recommendations.