Bringing vision care back home

In 2022, we brought you the story of Joana Annobil, who was pursuing a degree in ophthalmic nursing with support from Operation Eyesight. We caught up with Joana again in recent months to find out what she’s up to now.

As a general nurse working in a busy clinic in Ghana’s Awutu Senya District, Joana Annobil treated a wide range of medical conditions. But one issue consistently stood out to her as having the biggest impact on patients’ lives: vision loss.

“Our eyes are like the light of the human body,” she says. “Without your eyes, you can’t do anything. You can’t go anywhere. So, the eye is very important to talk about and take care of.”

Joana wanted to bring better eye health care to people in her district by studying ophthalmic nursing, but pursuing further studies felt out of reach because of the costs. After discussing her aspirations with her manager at the local health directorate, a partner of ours, the manager reached out for support. Thanks to the generosity of donors like you, Joana received the financial assistance she needed to advance her education.

Today, Joana is fully certified as an ophthalmic nurse after completing a degree program at the Ophthalmic Nursing School in Korle Bu. She works at the Senya Beraku Polyclinic in her home district of Awutu Senya. With her advanced training, she’s better able to diagnose, refer, and explain conditions and procedures to her patients. Most importantly, she is well equipped to combat eye health myths and misconceptions that prevent many patients from getting treatment.

Joana says one of her inspirations for becoming an ophthalmic nurse was her late grandmother, who went completely blind.

“If it was now, I could have been able to identify whether it was cataracts, glaucoma, retinal problems, or even optic nerve issues,” she says. “I would have been able to help her on time.”

Learn more about your support for healthcare workers: operationeyesight.com/hospital-strengthening/