Working towards a culturally safe optometry workforce for first nations peoples in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand

Australian and New Zealand Indigenous cultures are instantly recognisable in any international forum. Aboriginal Australian culture, in particular, is revered as the oldest continuous living culture on the planet.2 Conversely, Māori, is the youngest. Whilst vastly different, they hold several similar core values: connections to land, people, language, custom and tradition. Importantly, they also share a traumatic and turbulent history with the European colonisers, contributing significantly to the disparities experienced by First Nations Peoples in the modern health system.3,4 This viewpoint article written through the lens of Indigenous practitioners and patients from Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand and vetted by experts and leaders in Indigenous eyecare may not be a comfortable read. It is intended to challenge the reader, in order to better understand what is required for Indigenous people, to thrive in optometry and how the profession can improve the availability of culturally safe, patient-centred services and to elevate the eye health outcomes of our Indigenous patients.