The VOSH July Newsletter is here | | This month, we celebrate 30 years of humanitarian work with Canadian VOSH-British Columbia-TWECS, President Santiago reflects on the importance of global leadership to achieve eye care for all. We share activities from chapters in the Philippines, Nigeria, Texas, Jordan, Nicaragua, Ghana, celebrate the recent Global Optometry Students Summit, share publications, and awards. Continue sharing your news | | | | |
President Santiago takes the opportunity to recognise the contribution of the VOSH community in global platforms, such as the recent AOA/WCO World Congress of Optometry held in June in Minneapolis.
Read the article in English here and in Spanish here.
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A story of love and fulfilled promises
2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the Canadian VOSH-British Columbia-TWECS chapter. Dr Marina Roma March shares a heart-touching story about the origins and development of this chapter. This story is about love, commitment, keeping promises, and changing lives. Read the article in English here and in Spanish here. You can contact Dr Roma-March at twecs@shaw.ca
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International Symposium on Special Education (ISSED9)
Dr Jennifer Viñola, board member of VOSH/International and faculty adviser of the SVOSH-MCU chapter in the Philippines, participated in the 9th International Symposium on Special Education (ISSED9). Under the theme “Life Transitions – Learning, Living, and Working for Children with Special Needs” the event took place from June 11 to 13, 2025, in Thailand.
Dr. Viñola presented on “A Pediatric Eye and Developmental Case Study of a Child with Autism”. You can read the report here and the case study here. You can contact Dr. Viñola at drjennvinola@yahoo.com
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VOSH-IEVA-Jordan organizes online webinars on Provinding Optimum Eye Care in Limited Resource Areas
Between July 19 and 20, VOSH-IEVA-Jordan organized two webinars with experts from the Eastern Mediterranean region and Dr Dan Twelker, past President of VOSH/international as a special guest.
You can watch the recordings here:
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First Nigerian SVOSH chapters gathering
During the recent Nigerian Optometric Association (NOA) Conference, our Nigerian SVOSH chapters met to discuss the challenges and priorities for optometric education and community outreach. VOSH/International is excited to support this process and looks forward to the follow-up discussions.
Watch the space, our Nigerian SVOSH chapters are determined to make an impact.
Special thanks to the faculty advisers and students, who actively engaged in this activity.
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VOSH-Texas organizes another successful summer clinic
Hundreds of patients received exams. Two hundred and twenty five cataract surgeries and 140 custom-made glasses. This is a great team!.
Their next clinic is between October 26th and November 2nd. For more information, visit www.guerreroclinic.org
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The second Global Optometry Students Summit organized by OPTOGLOBE and SVOSH-MCU ends with great success.
The Global Optometry Student Summit – “Lens of Diversity,” was held from July 10 to 13 via Zoom. Over four inspiring days, this international gathering welcomed over 1,329 registrants from all over the world, featured 24 speakers, and demonstrated the power of students’ leadership. We look forward to supporting next year’s summit.
You can watch the video recordings by following these links:
Day 1- Asia
Day 2: Eastern Mediterranean
Day 3: The Americas
Day 4: Africa, Europe, and Australia
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Dr Greg Pearl receives the Brien Holden Founders Award
Dr Greg Pearl, president of VOSH-California and a past President of VOSH/International, has been awarded one of the inaugural Brien Holden Founders Awards. The awards honor individuals and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to advancing global vision care.
The awards will be presented at the first Brien Holden Founders Award dinner, on October 7 at Artists for Humanity, Boston at 6pm.
If you are attending the AAO meeting, please consider attending the award dinner.
You can reserve your place here
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Manila Central University College of Optometry celebrates students’ leadership
Kriselle Franz Gonzales, president of SVOSH-MCU in the Philippines, received the Centralino Student Volunteer Award for demonstrating exceptional leadership and passion in serving the community. As the president of the SVOSH-MCU Chapter, she led her fellow officers in organizing and executing projects to benefit underserved communities.
Kriselle is always ready to help at every open clinic and is one of the first to volunteer for
outreach initiatives. Whether it’s providing eye care services or guiding fellow volunteers, she
consistently shows up with a positive attitude and a genuine desire to make a difference. Her selfless contributions have not only improved the vision of many individuals but have also inspired others to get involved in volunteer work, said Dr Viñola, faculty adviser of SVOSH-MCU.
Our sincere congratulations to Kriselle for a well-deserved award.
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Accessibility and challenges to ophthalmic instruments acquisition among optometry students in Ghana
An insightful paper exploring ophthalmic instrument acquisition among optometry students in Ghana by the Department of Optometry and Visual Science of KNUST has been recently published. You can find the paper here
You can contact Dr Kwadwo Owusu Akuffo at akuffokwadwoowusu@knust.edu.gh
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Social and eye health indicators and their relation to UNICAM’s eye health program in Nueva Guinea, Nicaragua (in Spanish)
UNICAM is a system of Nicaraguan rural university venues. The paper examines the impact of the UNICAM-Nueva Guinea program on visual and social health in Nueva Guinea, Nicaragua, based on 389 surveys. While the program has improved access to eye care, challenges remain in the available optometric workforce and public awareness. This work is part of the project Vision and Education between SVOSH-UNAN and VOSH/International. You can read the paper here.
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In loving memory of Dr. Maklin Eugéne- an inspiration to all
Dr. Maklin Eugéne and his work in Haïti embodied courage, vision, humility, and an unwavering humanitarian spirit and compassion. His tireless dedication to his people and country inspired hope and belief in a better future.
His golden heart stopped on July 4th. His departure leaves a gap in our hearts and his country.
VOSH/International and VOSH-Pennsylvania had the privilege of knowing and collaborating with Dr Eugéne. He championed the establishment of a vision clinic at the New Hope Hospital, warmly welcomed our teaching clinics for the Haitian optometry students, and shared in our dream of establishing permanent eye health services for the local community.
We were touched by his compassion and dedication to his people. Keep supporting his work. Haiti needs it more than ever. More information here.
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ODs and opticians are needed for Costa Rica
Hopeful Ways, an all-volunteer organization, has provided eye health care in Central America for over a decade. They need volunteer optometrists and opticians for their next eye care mission in January 2026 in Costa Rica.
Help reduce the waiting list for eye examinations at the Nicoya Hospital.
More information on this clinic is here.
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#SeeWhat Matters: Research is key. Funding for it is essential
Key US vision organizations are collaborating to raise awareness on the importance of vision research and the need to preserve funding for it.
The #SeeWhatMatters campaign intends to elevate the profile of federally funded vision research, reinforce the critical need to keep the National Eye Institute (NEI) independent, and demonstrate the human impact of discoveries in vision science.
Read the AAO press release here and visit www.seewhatmatters.org to find out more about this campaign.
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