Community Programs at OHSU Casey Eye Institute

A core part of Casey's mission is simple yet ambitious: to eliminate preventable blindness in Oregon and beyond.

Our clinical expertise and pioneering research are vital to achieving this goal. But just as important is our work in and with the community, far beyond our clinic doors. We have programs in Oregon and around the world that bring eye care services directly to people who have the most trouble accessing care.

That work happens is because of you. Donor funds, along with dedicated volunteers, are the engines that power all of our community programs. Learn more about how to join our dedicated group of volunteers or consider donating to one of our programs.

Casey Community Outreach Program mobile clinic

The mobile clinic van travels around Oregon providing free vision screenings to adults

Since its first voyage in 2010, Casey's mobile outreach clinic has traveled across Oregon to bring eye care to people who have limited access to eye care. Our 33-foot mobile ophthalmology vehicle is staffed by volunteer doctors, technicians, students and community members. Their work has helped us identify participants with common preventable and treatable eye conditions that often cause blindness, including macular degeneration, glaucoma and vision problems relating to diabetes.

Learn more and volunteer with the mobile clinic outreach program.

Elks Children’s Vision Screening

A simple device can take a picture of a child's eyes to find vision problems.

Thanks to longtime and generous support from the Oregon State Elks Association, we provide free vision screenings to about 8,000 preschool children each year. The screenings detect eye diseases that are most successfully treated while the child's visual system is still developing, before age 5. They also help provide vision correction for children who need it.

Learn more about preschool vision screenings. 

International ophthalmology program

Dr. Clements performing surgery internationally

We work to reduce blindness throughout the world by bringing high-quality training to providers in developing countries like Myanmar and Thailand as well as in American Samoa. The program also supports Casey ophthalmology residents’ travel internationally to treat patients in underserved areas. The program also brings foreign ophthalmologists to Casey for intensive medical and surgical training, which allows them to then improve basic and specialized eye care in their home nations.

Learn more about our international ophthalmology program.

Wold Family Macular Degeneration Center

A woman having an eye exam

Our center provides patients with the most advanced treatments and tools available to manage their disease, including experimental therapies not available elsewhere in the region. The center also sponsors one of the nation's largest patient-focused conferences on macular degeneration, attracting nearly 1,000 people each year.

ReSpectacle

Volunteers have fun making eye glasses with the hands as they help provide free eye screenings to participants

Uncorrected refractive error is the most important cause of preventable vision loss in the world. Organized by our residents and with the support of the OHSU medical students, the Casey chapter of ReSpectacle seeks to combat this important cause of vision loss by cleaning, measuring, and matching donated eye glasses for redistribution to underserved communities worldwide. Last year, the OHSU chapter of ReSpectacle processed over 500 glasses for donation.