Women are entering medical school in unprecedented numbers, and in some institutions, are the majority of enrolled students. This is a far cry from the 1960's when the founding officers of WIO were medical students in schools where barely 5% of a given class were women.

The need for collegial relationships, the effectiveness of a support network, and validating communications led founding WIO officers in the mid-1970's to bring together about 25 women who met for noon-time luncheons with speakers and networking at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). The early women in ophthalmology were few in their respective departments and worked on such challenging issues as gender equity in pay, academic promotion and tenure track opportunities, and the need for recognition of academic achievement.

The luncheon gatherings evolved into a structured organization that enables WIO to share information and solve problems that previously were often faced in isolation. Marjorie Mosier, MD, founding chairperson and first president, nurtured this organization in its earliest days. Penny Asbell, MD, had articles of incorporation implemented during her term as the second president of WIO. After three years of making persuasive and appealing presentations to the AAO Council, voting member status on the Council of AAO was gained in 1991. Ruth Goodell, MD, was the first Councilor and was nominated for President of Council during her term.

The late Bernice Z. Brown, MD, who shouldered secretary-treasurer duties in the organization's earliest years, brought further recognition to the organization in her term as the third president. In 1997 she began what has been a continuous series of WIO-AAO co-sponsored symposia at the AAO Annual Meeting. She led a strategic planning retreat during which the current mission statement was implemented with emphasis on education and service.

WIO's academic and scientific programs gained further recognition during the term of the fourth president, Barbara J. Arnold, MD. She founded the Annual Summer Symposium, starting in 1998 in Aspen, Colorado. This program provides solid scientific and practice management information to members, along with social programs that welcome family and friends of all genders and generations. Dr. Arnold also initiated the WIO website in 1997.

Jacqueline Lustgarten, MD, fifth president, served as database manager until 1999 when the organization had grown sufficiently to fund professional management. Her WIO presidency was significant for reaching out to the younger ophthalmologists, revising the format of the Summer Symposium and initiating an e-newsletter.

This historical perspective shares how the need to support each other in meeting the challenges of personal and career development has grown from a volunteer effort, conducted out of homes and offices, to a larger organization with greater structure and support.

Authored by Barbara J. Arnold, MD, Past-President, WIO