Sandra Wang-Harris, OD, MPH, FAAO, associate professor at the UAB School of Optometry, has been chosen by the World Council of Optometry (WCO) to deliver the Memorial Lecture in Honor of Karen Sparrow. This is an international award.

This memorial lecture honors the memory of Ms. Karen Sparrow, a public health optometrist who devoted herself to addressing the needs of underserved populations and regions with limited access to eye care. Sparrow, a longtime WCO volunteer, exemplified the spirit, passion, and commitment to public health optometry that embodies the mission of WCO. Wang-Harris will present this lecture during the 5th World Congress of Optometry.

"It is a great honor to be selected as the speaker for the Karen Sparrow Memorial Lecture,” she shared. “Karen's life and work embodied true compassion, tirelessly giving of herself to those less fortunate. Her love for the optometry profession and her care for others, both at home and in distant lands, exemplify the spirit of a true humanitarian optometrist.”

Wang-Harris earned her Doctor of Optometry degree from Ohio State University and a Master of Public Health degree from Walden University. In 1999, she established the first eye clinic for HIV-positive patients in Huntsville, AL, igniting her passion for working with underserved populations. She has worked in Nepal, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, East Timor (Timor Leste), The Gambia, Kazakhstan, and the Federated States of Micronesia. She returned to the United States to join the faculty at UAB Optometry, where she previously completed a primary care residency.

WCO is an international membership-based non-profit organization for individual optometrists, industry professionals, and optometric organizations that envisions a world with high-quality, accessible eye health and vision care for all people. Its mission is to advance and promote optometry, global eye health and vision care through collaboration, education, and advocacy.

Source: WCO News Release