May is Macula Month

Macula Month 1 – 31 May

May is Macula Month, our annual awareness campaign to help Australians understand their risk of macular diseases. When you understand your risk, and know what to do, you can take early action that could save your sight.

The 2021 Macula Month will be extra special. We’re celebrating the 20th anniversary of Macular Disease Foundation Australia. That’s 20 years of impact on behalf of the macular disease community we serve.

This May, we’ll focus on Check My Macula. Check My Macula is a short online quiz that reveals your individual risk factors for macular disease in less than a minute and helps you learn what to do.

Doing the quiz takes just 60 seconds – 60 seconds that could save your sight.

With tens of thousands already taking the quiz, Check My Macula is a hugely successful tool to educate people over 50 about their risks of macular disease. And, of course, to encourage them to have regular eye exams.

Please do the quiz. If you are already living with macular disease, please share the link with your family and friends this Macula Month.

The inaugural Ita Buttrose Oration

We have plenty of activities planned this Macula Month. We’re thrilled to announce the inaugural Ita Buttrose Oration. The Oration will be held in Canberra on Wednesday 5 May. You can buy tickets to this event.

Ita’s address is sure to shine a spotlight on macular disease and vision loss. It will also prompt national discussion about how we’re responding as a nation to ensure a healthy ageing Australia.

If you can’t make it to Canberra, the National Press Club event will be televised nationally. We’ll also share the address via this website after delivery.

The Research Grants Program

In addition to 20 years as an organisation, 2021 marks the 10th anniversary of our Research Grants Program.

This year, we’ll allocate a further $1 million to new, exciting macular disease research projects. As well, $100,000 will be awarded for innovative ‘blue sky’ research projects as part of the inaugural Grant Family Fund program.

The successful recipients for new research funding will be announced on Wednesday, 19 May by the Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd).

The new funding will bring the total funding for macular disease research, provided through our Research Grants Program, to $5.2 million. MDFA is now the largest non-government source of research funds for macular disease in Australia.

Of course, it’s only possible with the support of our generous donors.

Health professional participation

We’re grateful for the enthusiastic embrace of the MDFA’s Macula Month by health care professionals generally, and eye health professionals, in particular.

If you’re a health care professional, we have created a comprehensive tool kit to help you participate in Macula Month. You’ll find it in the Resources section.

Connect with us this Macula Month

There’s plenty more to come for Macula Month 2021. So please keep an eye on our social media channels. You’ll find us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.