Patients on Oregon’s south coast no longer need to drive to Portland or Medford for subspecialty retinal care. Retina Care serves the coast — here’s how the practice reaches patients in Bandon, Brookings, Coquille, and surrounding communities.
Oregon’s south coast is beautiful, remote, and historically underserved for medical subspecialties. Patients with retinal conditions — macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachment — have typically faced the choice of driving over the Coastal Range to Medford or Roseburg, or making the longer journey north to Eugene or Portland. That journey, often three or more hours each way, is a barrier that causes some patients to delay care and others to forgo it entirely. Retina Care has worked to change that equation for coastal Oregonians.
Communities We Serve on the Oregon Coast
Retina Care extends its reach to patients along the southern Oregon coast, including communities in Coos County, Curry County, and surrounding areas. Patients in Bandon, Coquille, Myrtle Point, Powers, Coos Bay, North Bend, Brookings, Gold Beach, and Port Orford travel to Retina Care clinics for subspecialty retinal evaluation and treatment. For patients requiring urgent evaluation — bleeding from diabetic retinopathy, vision changes from new wet macular degeneration, new flashes/floaters — our team prioritizes same-day or next-day scheduling.
Why Coastal Patients Need Subspecialty Access
The demographics of Oregon’s south coast reflect the same pattern as southern Oregon more broadly: an older population with higher rates of conditions that cause retinal disease. Age-related macular degeneration affects roughly ten percent of people over 65 and accelerates in prevalence with each decade after that. Diabetic retinopathy affects a substantial proportion of patients with type 2 diabetes, which is prevalent throughout the region.
For patients in Brookings — the southernmost community on the Oregon coast, close to the California border — and Gold Beach, and Port Orford, our Bandon Retina Clinic is simply the closested and most convienent retina clinic. The nearest subspecialty retinal care was historically in Medford, nearly two hours away through the mountains. Access to Retina Care in Bandon means that Brookings patients now have a path to subspecialty care that doesn’t require a trip over the mountains.
Conditions Treated for Coastal Patients
Retina Care treats the full range of retinal conditions for patients from the coast:
- Age-related macular degeneration — both dry AMD with monitoring and AREDS2 supplementation, and wet AMD requiring anti-VEGF injections (Eylea, Vabysmo, or bevacizumab)
- Geographic atrophy — now treatable with Syfovre or Izervay for eligible patients
- Diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema — monitoring, laser treatment, and anti-VEGF injections
- Retinal vein occlusion — with anti-VEGF treatment for macular edema
- Eye floaters — including evaluation for symptomatic vitreous opacities
- Macular hole and epiretinal membrane — surgical management when indicated
Scheduling from the Coast
Call Retina Care at 541-873-8462 to schedule to schedule in our Bandon or North Bend / Coos Bay clinics. When you call, let the team know you’re calling from the coast — our scheduling team will work to consolidate your appointments efficiently and minimize repeat trips when possible. For patients receiving ongoing anti-VEGF injections, the team will also work with your local optometrist or ophthalmologist to establish a co-management plan that reduces the frequency of travel while keeping your retinal care properly supervised.
For patients with urgent symptoms — sudden floaters, flashes, a curtain in the vision, or sudden vision loss — call immediately and we will get you in immediately. These symptoms require same-day evaluation. Don’t wait for a routine appointment time.
Referring Providers on the Oregon Coast
Optometrists and primary care providers in Coos County, Curry County, and along the Oregon coast can refer patients directly to Retina Care. Our team handles prior authorizations and will communicate findings and treatment plans back to referring providers. For urgent referrals — sudden vision loss, new wet AMD, vision loss from diabetic retinopathy — call the office directly rather than using the standard referral process, and our team will work to get the patient seen the same day.
At Retina Care, retinal specialist Peter Karth, MD, MBA, FASRS, FACS is happy to help you with your retina concerns. Please call 541-873-8462 to schedule an appointment at a location near you. We are happy to offer Same Day/Next Day appointments!