Canmore Optometrist Helps Hundreds Of Children See More Clearly In Guatemala

Office hours looked a little different for Canmore optometrist Dr. Joanna Phillips in September.

Instead of seeing patients at her Canmore clinic, Phillips travelled to Guatemala, where she joined a Canadian Vision Care initiative providing eye examinations to hundreds of schoolchildren.

Working alongside Canadian and Guatemalan health care professionals, the team completed 349 eye examinations, identified 49 patients needing prescription glasses and referred 23 for further medical care.

But the work goes beyond eye examinations. Through partnerships with local health care providers and educators, the initiative aims to improve access to services long after visiting volunteers return home.

"We really wanted to go in there and just collaborate with the local people and provide something to them that was useful," Phillips told Bow Valley Insider.

Bringing Eye Care To Guatemala

Phillips, who operates Canmore Family Eyecare, joined the trip at the invitation of fellow optometrist Dr. Heather Cowie of Airdrie, who has longstanding connections to Guatemala.

Cowie first travelled to the country in 2003 to help operate a school for Indigenous children. She returned in January 2025 with a team from her clinic to provide eye care services, work that has since expanded through Canadian Vision Care, a charity supporting vision care in underserved communities.

For Phillips, the trip marked a return to international volunteer work after more than two decades. She previously participated in an eye care trip to Nepal with Rotary Australia in 2001.

The team travelled to Cobán, Guatemala, bringing equipment and supplies from Canada to provide comprehensive eye examinations rather than basic vision screenings.

"When we went to Guatemala, we took like the whole office and the kitchen sink with us so we were able to give these kids all proper eye exams and not just really basic vision screenings," Phillips said.

Of the 349 examinations, 348 were for students and one was for an adult. The team identified 49 patients requiring prescription glasses and referred another 23 for further medical assessment, including for potentially serious eye conditions.

For Phillips, some of the most memorable moments came when children experienced clearer vision during their examinations.

"For an optometrist, it's when you first put the correct prescription on a child and they see clearly for the first time and the face just lights up," she said.

"Everything has been a blur for this child and you've just changed their life by giving them clear vision."

Building Something That Lasts

Rather than distributing donated glasses brought from Canada, the team worked with Visualiza, a Guatemalan eye care provider, to arrange individually prescribed glasses through local professionals.

Children were able to choose their own frames, with donations covering the cost of their new glasses.

"We got donations and we actually ordered them all brand new glasses which they picked themselves," Phillips said.

The Canadian team also worked alongside Guatemalan optometrists and provided equipment to support their ongoing work. Local professionals were responsible for producing the glasses and coordinating follow-up care.

Phillips said the goal was to strengthen existing services rather than create a program dependent on visiting volunteers.

"It's more about giving them the resources and means of slowly being able to provide more opportunities for these kids," she said.

The initiative also involves partnerships beyond eye care, including Instituto Puente, a Guatemalan organization working to expand educational opportunities for children and youth in Alta Verapaz.

Audiology professionals also participated in the September visit, providing hearing assessments and helping coordinate additional care when needed.

Beyond The Eye Examinations

Some of Phillips' most memorable experiences took place outside the examination rooms.

During the trip, the group travelled approximately 35 kilometres from Cobán to visit a rural school, a journey that took about two and a half hours because of the road conditions.

Phillips recalled watching a group of boys working in heavy rain to construct an additional classroom using bamboo.

"There was like 10 or 12 of them raising these bamboo structures to make a classroom because they just want to learn and be in school," she said.

Rather than conducting examinations, the group spent time with residents and educators learning about the community's priorities.

Phillips also found herself helping a group of young girls make tortillas.

Despite speaking very little Spanish, she joined them in preparing the dough, much to their amusement. As she struggled to shape the tortillas, the girls continued handing her more dough.

Eventually, Phillips began singing Queen's We Will Rock You, prompting laughter from the group.

"There was absolutely no communication. I speak like five words of Spanish," she said.

"But just the camaraderie and the fun was awesome."

Although Phillips has no confirmed plans for another trip, she said she would be interested in returning to Guatemala and continuing the relationships established during the September visit.

For now, Canadian Vision Care's work is intended to continue through its partnerships with local health care providers, educators and community organizations.