Trust General Manager, Doctor Kitione Rawalai

The Trust conducts sight and hearing tests for school students and feeder communities.

It refers patients who need further treatment to respective Health Ministry departments.

Trust General Manager, Doctor Kitione Rawalai says more stringent efforts are needed to ensure referred patients receive the immediate care and treatment, once they have been diagnosed.

“We want to work together with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education and those are the only stakeholders we are working with and we need to strengthen our referral pathways in order for us to see patients and refer them accordingly and get assisted with devices or assistance that they need.”

Trust doctor conducting sight and hearing tests for a school student.

Dr Rawalai says the most common eye condition found in students include trachoma and conjunctivitis.

He says for adults, the most common eye conditions are cataract, refractive errors and pterygium.

Dr Rawalai says most vision impairment cases are referred to the Health Ministry’s Eye Department and those that need reading glasses are referred to the Pacific Eye Institute in Suva.

Trust doctor conducting sight and hearing tests for a community member