Globally, there are 112 million more women than men living with vision loss, including blindness. One contributing factor is that women make up 70% of the health workforce yet hold only 25% of leadership roles. Cultural and gender biases, limited mentorship, and caregiving responsibilities often restrict advancement for women in eye health. At the same time, in many parts of the world female patients are often more likely to seek care from female providers.
That’s why it’s so important to ensure more highly skilled women can advance in eye care—not just to recognize their expertise and contributions, but to expand access to quality care for the millions of women and girls who need it most.
Nga lives in a community where people, especially women, struggle to access the scarce health care that is available. But thanks to Orbis supporters and partners, Nga got the care she deserves.
Nga is one of five sisters, with her youngest sister only six months old. Nga’s eldest sister, now 19, left the family and was forced to marry at 13. Until recently, Nga had difficulty seeing what her teachers wrote on the chalkboard and had to copy her classmate’s notebooks to keep up. Like most children in her area, Nga had never received an eye exam—until Orbis supporters brought eye care to her region.
