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A specialised training course for eye health care professionals aims to strengthen eye care services across the Pacific region. The Ophthalmic Instrument Maintenance Training Course, hosted at the Pacific Eye Institute in Fiji from 18-22 November, bought together 20 participants, including eye care nurses, technicians, and biomedical engineers from six Pacific Island countries. The course […]

Isabelle Evans, 10, from Te Rapa Primary School in Hamilton, has been named this year’s Fred Hollows Humanity Award’s Junior Ambassador for going above and beyond to be a responsible, kind and helpful student and role model.  Mike McCurry, Te Rapa Primary School Teacher, nominated Isabelle for the award, describing her natural tendency to help […]

Representatives from the Governments of Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and Australia, and other dignitaries gathered for a Groundbreaking Ceremony to celebrate and kick off the building of the Centre for Eye Health in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.

Around the world, 450 million children need treatment for a sight condition, and 90 million children are already living with some form of sight loss.

A dedicated team has completed the first-ever Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness (RAAB) survey in Samoa. A RAAB is a standardised, population-based survey method used to determine the prevalence and causes of blindness and vision impairment among people aged 50 years and older in a country. Due to the high rates of diabetes in Samoa, […]

We are proud to have won the Sustainability Award at this year’s New Zealand For Purpose Reporting Awards (formerly the Charity Awards) for our 2022 Performance Report. The Awards, organised by Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ), honour the leading examples of financial reporting in the For-Purpose sector. The Sustainability Award recognises organisations […]

Our Outreach Team recently wrapped up a successful visit to Alotau in the Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. Milne Bay Province is made up of more than 600 islands, about 160 of which are inhabited, and has limited access to eye care due to its geographical isolation, lack of health care facilities and […]

In March this year, our team in Madang, Papua New Guinea, worked with local partners to conduct the first outreach to include the collection of disability data. This is a stride towards our goal of providing quality and inclusive eye care by integrating Gender, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) activities into our programmes. This initiative was […]

The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ has warmly welcomed the NZ Government announcement of $18.9 million funding towards the construction of a purpose-built eye care training and service centre in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The investment will support the development of a new training facility for eye care specialists in PNG and represents a significant milestone […]

Today, we celebrate the people who are at the heart of eye healthcare systems — our incredible eye nurses. Eye nurse are essential to delivering eye care, often working on the front lines running vision tests, educating patients and their families about eye health and treatment options, and assisting with all the prep work need […]

There aren’t many people who can claim to be the first person to explore a new country or area, but for Michael (Mike) Shepherd this was a defining point in his life. At just 23-years-old Mike took part in the Australian Star Mountains Expedition and became one of the first Europeans to traverse the rugged […]

A newly developed National Eye Care Plan is being launched in Apia, Samoa, this week during the Pacific Heads of Health Meeting. The National Eye Care Plan 2024-2028 (Plan) was developed by the Samoa Ministry of Health – with guidance from a technical steering group. It aims to improve eye health care and reduce avoidable […]