Coastal Eye Centre

01/04/2026

Coastal Eye Centre will be closed Friday 3rd April - Monday 6th April for the Easter long weekend. We will re-open on Tuesday 7th April.

23/03/2026

22nd-28th March is World Optometry Week
World Optometry Week raises awareness around the subject of optometry and reminds the public why routine eye care is so important.

Optometrists not only perform routine eye exams and prescribe glasses and contact lenses, but they also play a crucial role in detecting and managing a wide range of eye conditions, eye injuries and infections.

17/03/2026

What Are Digital Devices?
These can be computer screens, smart phones, tablets, and similar devices.

Can Looking at Digital Screens Cause Eyestrain?
Fatigue, dry eyes, bad lighting, or how you sit in front of these screens can cause eyestrain. Symptoms of eyestrain include sore or irritated eyes and difficulty focusing. You may also have symptoms of eyestrain if you need glasses or a change in your glasses.

What Can I Do to Prevent Eyestrain?
You can help prevent eyestrain by making changes to your workspace and by visiting your eye doctor. Here are a few suggestions on how to make your workspace more comfortable:
- Place your screen 20 to 26 inches away from your eyes and a little bit below eye level.
- Use a document holder placed next to your screen. It should be close enough so you don’t have to swing your head back and forth or constantly change your eye focus.
- Change your lighting to lower glare and harsh reflections. Glare filters over your digital screens can also help.
- Get a chair you can adjust.
- Choose screens that can tilt and swivel. A keyboard that you can adjust is also helpful.
- Computer glasses with yellow-tinted lenses that block blue light can help ease digital eye strain by increasing contrast.
- Anti-reflective lenses reduce glare and increase contrast and also block blue light from digital devices.

Use the 20-20-20 rule. Every 20 minutes, take a 20 second break and look at something 20 feet away.

12/03/2026

We would like to take a moment to acknowledge our amazingly dedicated Practice Managers Jackie & Petrina! We appreciate everything they do to keep our clinic running every single day. 💕

08/03/2026

8-15th March is World Glaucoma Week.

Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that progressively damage the optic nerve of the eye. Known as the 'silent thief of sight' glaucoma develops slowly and often without any symptoms, leaving people undetected until the disease reaches an advanced stage. Left untreated, it can cause vision loss and may even lead to blindness. This is why we need your help to spread the word and raise awareness.

Did you know?
- Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide. It is estimated that 4.5 million persons globally are blind due to glaucoma and that this number will rise to 11.2 million by 2020.
- Glaucoma is a progressive eye disease and is a leading cause of irreversible blindness in Australia. It is estimated that over 300,000 Australians have glaucoma, yet 50% are unaware they have it, thinking they have healthy eyes.
- While vision loss can’t be restored, early diagnosis and treatment can delay or halt the progression of the disease. That is why it’s so important to detect the problem as early as possible.
- Glaucoma is hereditary - you are 10x more likely to have glaucoma if you have a direct family member with glaucoma.
- First degree relatives of a person with glaucoma have an almost 1 in 4 chance of developing glaucoma in their lifetime, and that risk increases to 56% if their glaucoma is advanced. So telling your direct family to get tested is extremely important.

Glaucoma is diagnosed by undergoing a comprehensive eye exam that includes a detailed examination of the optic nerve and may require visual field testing and imaging. Intraocular pressure testing alone is not a reliable method for diagnosing glaucoma.

06/03/2026

March is Workplace Eye Wellness Awareness month. This month highlights the importance of eye safety in professional environments. In 2026, this campaign focuses on both industrial eye safety and reducing digital eye strain for office workers.

Eye injuries in the workplace are very common. More than 2,000 people injure their eyes at work each day. About 1 in 10 injuries require one or more missed workdays to recover. Of the total amount of work-related injuries, 10-20 % will cause temporary or permanent vision loss.

Experts believe that the right eye protection could have lessened the severity or even prevented 90% of eye injuries in accidents.

What are the Common Causes of Workplace Eye Injuries?
- Flying objects (bits of metal, glass)
- Tools
- Particles
- Chemicals
- Harmful radiation
- Any combination of these or other hazards

What is my Best Defense Against an Eye Injury?
There are three things you can do to help prevent an eye injury:
- Know the eye safety dangers at work-complete an eye hazard assessment.
- Eliminate hazards before starting work. Use machine guarding, work screens, or other engineering controls).
- Use proper eye protection.

When Should I Protect My Eyes at Work?
You should wear safety eyewear whenever there is a chance of eye injury. Anyone working in or passing through areas that pose eye hazards should wear protective eyewear.

What Type of Safety Eyewear is Available?
- Non-prescription and prescription safety glasses
- Goggles
- Face shields
- Welding helmets
- Full-face respirators

What Type of Safety Eye Protection Should I Wear?
The type of safety eye protection you should wear depends on the hazards in your workplace. If you are working in an area that has particles, flying objects, or dust, you must at least wear safety glasses with side protection (side shields). If you are working with chemicals, you should wear goggles. If you are working near hazardous radiation (welding, lasers, or fiber optics) you should use special-purpose safety glasses, goggles, face shields, or helmets designed for that task.

Prevent eye injuries in the workplace by protecting your eyes each and every day. 😎🤓

23/02/2026

23rd February - 1st March is Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) week.

Retinopathy of Prematurity is a condition affecting some babies born prematurely caused by abnormal development of retinal blood vessels.

Risk factors for ROP include babies who:
- Are born prematurely (earlier than 30 weeks of pregnancy)
- Have low birth weight (less than 1250g, the smaller the baby the greater the risk)
- Have complications after they are born and receive extra oxygen for more than a few days.

ROP affects the retina, at the back of the eye, and occurs when the retinal blood vessels, which are not fully developed at birth, begin to grow abnormally. It may lead to partial or complete vision loss if the condition is severe, and the retina detaches.

09/02/2026

February is Low Vision Awareness Month. The month highlights support services for those with blindness or low vision, encourages regular eye exams, and promotes inclusivity.

Low vision refers to a permanent reduction in vision that cannot be corrected by glasses, contact lenses, or medical treatment. Common causes include age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetes and eye trauma.

Symptoms include difficulty with daily tasks like reading, driving, and recognizing faces, often involving blurred vision, blind spots, or loss of peripheral vision. Low vision doesn't mean total blindness, many people with low vision still have some degree of useful sight. However, it becomes necessary to adopt new strategies, tools, and technologies to maintain independence and continue doing the things you love.

03/02/2026

February is Retinitis Pigmentosa Awareness Month 💕

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) refers to a group of inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) that affect the photoreceptor (light sensing) cells in the retina. People with RP experience a gradual decline in their vision as the two types of photoreceptor cells in their eyes – rod and cone cells – die over time.

The first symptom patients usually notice is difficulty seeing in dim light, including transitioning from light to dark and vice versa. Some people are diagnosed in childhood, while others are not affected until they are adults.

The rate of progression and degree of visual loss can vary from person to person, and even among affected members of the same family. It is therefore very difficult to predict what an individual’s vision will be like at a specific time in the future. Both eyes are usually affected in a similar way.

As RP progresses, the peripheral vision loss moves slowly inwards, giving people the experience of “tunnel vision”. In some people, the vision loss can eventually cause loss of the central vision too.

In Australia, it is estimated that one in 3,000 people has RP, which equates to approximately 8,900 individuals.

There is no cure for RP. There is currently only one treatment available for a subtype of RP called RPE65-associated retinal degeneration. Luxturna® (voretigene neparvovec-rzyl) is a gene therapy that replaces the RPE65 gene in the eye, thus slowing or halting the progression of the retinal damage.

Other emerging treatments for RP are currently under development.

29/01/2026

A little Q & A with one of our Ophthalmologists, Dr Thomas Campbell...🤩

> What inspired you to be an ophthalmologist? Was it a personal connection, a defining moment or a cause that sparked your interest?

'I was inspired to become an ophthalmologist by spending time with Dr Mark Loane. He was an inspiration to me and showed me how miraculous eye surgery can be - a person can walk in blind and can see again almost immediately after cataract surgery. There is very little else in medicine that is joyous in the same way. Additionally as an ophthalmologist you get to work in a team of the most dedicated, passionate, caring humans. People who have chosen to spend their lives trying to make the lives of others better - from the reception staff, technicians, nurses, optometrists, and other ophthalmologists. I find that very inspiring and its why I am so enthusiastic about my work.'

> What is one thing you still find fascinating about eyes?

'I find EVERYTHING about eyes fascinating, and not just human eyes but all types of eyes. I STRONGLY recommend "Animal Eyes" by Mike Land to anyone interested in learning more about eyes. This book goes over all the different types of eyes that have evolved and the incredible anatomy and physiology of each. One fact that I like to tell people: a good human eye (eg a young person with no refractive error) is limited not by biology but by physics. The interphotoreceptor spacing is right at the margin where quantum leak becomes a problem. Thus the human eye cannot simply be improved by packing in more photoreceptors as quantum physics effects start to cause problems at a tighter photoreceptor mosaic. The only way to make the eye better is to make it bigger. The wedgetail eagle can see better than a human but thats only because the focal length of a wedgetail eagle's eye is about half as long again as a humans!'

26/01/2026

22/01/2026

Coastal Eye Centre will be closed on Monday 26th January for the Australia Day Public Holiday. We will re-open on Tuesday 27th January.