Our Vision
A world with accessible eye care
VHI was founded in 1985 to serve communities around the world with vision care. While much of our work over the years has taken place in Latin America, we added domestic field programs to our organizational portfolio in 2018. We are proud to serve underserved communities in the US and around the world. We provide high-quality, direct patient care to the communities we serve. Our services include comprehensive eye exams, life-altering surgeries, prosthetic eyes, dispensing of eyeglasses and protective eyewear, and more. In the wake of COVID-19, we expanded our programming to include sponsorship of continued education for internationally-based medical professionals, as well as financial resources to remove barriers to surgical eye care abroad.
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Partnerships
Strong partnerships are at the core of our work. We recruit volunteer ophthalmologists and other professional vision healthcare providers to participate in our field programs. We partner with at least one local organization for each field program; from local clinicians or physicians, to local governmental agencies, to local nonprofit organizations. We deliver services in local clinics or hospital facilities, often with the assistance of local personnel. Return trips to many program sites enable us to build long-lasting relationships with local partners and patients.
Capacity-Building
An integral component of our mission is capacity building for the international medical personnel with whom we partner; we deliver medical technology to medical professionals in communities we serve, as well as provide direct surgical training of medical personnel, pre- and post-operative care, specialized oculoplastic instruction, and patient exams. In 2020, we launched a program to provide funding for continued education for eye care professionals in under-resourced countries, increasing local capacity to treat patients in need.