Eye Health: Why Closing The Gender Gap Matters

Wiping off the flour on her saree, Shanthi (name changed for privacy) steps out from the kitchen at her home in a remote village in Nashik, where she lives with her husband, a farmer. Since both husband and wife have undergone cataract surgeries, we enquired about who opted for surgery first. Shanthi instantly responded, “Since my husband is the head of the house and brings in the income, I asked him to schedule his surgery first, and then I got mine done later.” 

Despite managing both farm and household work, Shanthi put her husband’s health before her own. Shanthi’s story is not unique or unheard of. Patriarchy grips almost every Indian home, forcing women to sacrifice their health and suffer in silence.

From a statistical standpoint, 55% of people worldwide with vision loss are women and girls. The Global Burden of Disease study found that women are 12% more likely to have vision loss than men, 8% women are more likely to be blind, and 15% of them are more likely to suffer moderate to severe vision impairment.

Why is there a gender divide?

As per the World Health Statistics report, women live on average five years longer than men, making them more vulnerable to age-related conditions such as cataract, glaucoma, presbyopia, and macular degeneration. Beyond biological aspects, women are conditioned to see their needs as secondary. Socio-economic and cultural factors, as in Shanthi’s case, deepen this, leaving them with a disproportionate burden of eye health issues.

Understanding the Barriers

Both genders face access challenges, but women encounter deeper barriers, widening the divide. Here are some of the barriers:

• Literacy: As per the Census of India (2011), 82% of men were literate in comparison to 65% of women in the country. This often results in a lack of awareness and limits the possibility of treatment of eye diseases and other health issues.
• Finances: The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021 reveals that women in India earn only one-fifth of what men earn. With limited finances, many women avoid healthcare, often skipping even basic screenings due to fear of treatment costs.
• Occupational Segregation and Leadership: According to the ILO, women comprise over 39% of the global workforce, yet they hold less than 10% of top executive roles across most industries. Such segregation deepens gender gaps in job quality, exposure, and negotiation power.

Bridging the gap

To pave the path of development, there is an urgent need to address gender-based health inequities, and eye health cannot be left behind.

Bringing Care Closer: In many rural communities, having primary eye care available within the village reduces the need for long-distance travel. For instance, a Vision Centre in the community not only brings services closer but also enables women to seek care independently, without relying on a male family member for support.

Gender-Sensitive Human Resources: Women, particularly in rural areas, prefer visiting centres and clinics run by other women, as this creates a more comfortable environment. Research shows they are more likely to seek eye health services from female providers, highlighting the need to prioritise recruiting and training women health workers to make services more gender-responsive and increase uptake.

Policy and Advocacy Initiatives: Advocacy is crucial to tackling gender-based inequalities in eye health and eliminating avoidable blindness. Global commitments such as the UN resolution on vision and the World Health Assembly’s IPEC resolution have integrated eye health into Universal Health Coverage, ensuring access for all by 2030. Stronger advocacy, better sex-disaggregated data, and gender-responsive policies are key to making these commitments inclusive and addressing women’s higher risk of age-related eye conditions.

Counselling and Community Engagement: Extend counselling beyond patients to families and communities, engaging men to challenge norms that devalue women’s health and delay care. Foster community dialogue on gender equity and health, ensuring women’s and girls’ voices are heard and prioritised in programme design.

Technology: Leverage and expand digital solutions to enhance women’s and girls’ access to eye health services. This includes telemedicine and mobile health applications designed to overcome barriers to care.

Sight loss stems from and deepens inequality. True gender equity in eye health is not just a health goal but a driver of progress. When women like Shanthi can prioritise their eye health, they spark change in entire communities. To make this possible, we must ensure eye care is accessible, affordable, and inclusive, so that no one is left behind in the fight against avoidable blindness.

Authored by Shrikant Ayyangar, Lead – Communications, Mission for Vision | Views expressed by the author are their own.