The Diabetes and Eye Health project: increasing eye examinations for adults newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

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People with diabetes are vulnerable to diabetic retinopathy (DR); a common complication that damages the blood vessels at the back of the eye. The early stages of DR are asymptomatic; early detection via eye examination and timely treatment are important in reducing the risk of vision loss. National Health and Medical Research Council recommend eye examinations at diabetes diagnosis and minimum every two years thereafter. Some at-risk groups have unacceptably low eye examination rates, including adults with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) who are i) 18-39 years or ii) from rural/regional Victoria (eye exam rates are 50% and 65% respectively). The aim of this project is to develop communication messages designed to increase eye examination rates for people from the two at-risk groups. Presented in leaflet format, the messages will be mailed to eligible registrants on the National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS). It is hypothesized that participants who have not previously had an eye examination and who receive a psycho-educational leaflet intervention containing theoretically derived messages demonstrated to correlate with the target behaviour will report: a. Increased intentions to seek eye examinations, and b. Higher rate of eye examinations than control group participants, at follow up.