Concepción was 14 when she walked into the clinic at Hospitalito Atitlán in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala. Her father, Juan, walked in beside her. He brought her because he didn’t know what else to do. Two years earlier, her vision had started to fade. At first, it was small things. Squinting at the board. Moving closer to see. Guessing more than reading. By 12, she couldn’t see the whiteboard from anywhere in the classroom. So she stopped going. She stopped studying. She stopped raising her...

More than 300 people stood in line at a hospital in Guatemala, waiting for an eye exam. By the end of the day, each of them would need to see one of three optometrists. Including Dr. Beaty. In her 30-plus years practicing in Utah County, a full day meant seeing 20 to 30 patients. On this clinic day, she and the team would see more than 300. “We were exhausted,” she said. “You’d look at the patient number and realize you were already past 180, and there were still so many more to go.” Dr....

A fifth grade boy visited our clinic in Puerto Peñasco, Mexico with his grandmother last month. He was unable to read or write and moved through the room quietly, withdrawn, and with his head down. Dr. Farrell spent a few minutes chatting with him in Spanish, trying to help him feel at ease. But the boy stayed tense, avoiding eye contact. When the exam began, the reason for his downcast face and body language became clear. The boy had an extremely high prescription of plus 12.50 in both eyes....