About Me

I was born and raised in Southern California, where I attended Pomona College. After graduating from medical school at the University of California San Francisco, my internship took me to Honolulu. It was my first time in Hawaii, and I fell in love with both the islands and the woman who would later become my wife. I left the islands to complete my training in San Francisco, but my wife and I always dreamed of returning to the islands. We were able to make that dream come true when I joined the Hawaii Permanente Medical Group (HPMG) in Maui.

About my practice

For me, medicine is a part of my heritage. My father and sister are physicians and my mother is a therapist. During high school and college, I shadowed my father in clinic. He showed me that practicing medicine is hard work but it is also very fulfilling. I learned from my family what it really means to care for a person, and I knew I wanted to make caring for others part of my life. After graduating from college, I moved to Germany as a Fulbright scholar at Heidelberg University. For the first month, I lived with an ophthalmologist and his son, a seven-year-old with a serious eye disease that left him mostly blind. I traveled to Germany to study quantum physics, but it was the time I spent with this family that shaped my life and led me pursue a career in ophthalmology. I have presented research on Fungal Keratitis and prosthetic corneas at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology national conference five times. I have also authored articles for the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), the American Journal of Ophthalmology, the British Journal of Ophthalmology, JAMA Ophthalmology, Cornea, the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, the Pan-American Journal of Ophthalmology, Chemistry, and others.To stay up-to-date with the latest research and developments in my field, I subscribe to key medical journals and attend conferences that bring my colleagues together to share innovations and best practices.Practicing with HPMG allows me to provide the best possible care for my patients. In our medical group, everyone is part of a team and we all work together to support each other. It is this model of teamwork that attracted me to HPMG, and it is the genuine support from my colleagues that allows me to deliver high-quality care to my patients.Because providing care is more than just fixing a problem, I want every patient I see to have a good experience. I enjoy making make funny faces for toddlers and spending extra time with concerned parents. I believe it is important to be on the same page with my patients, and the best way to do that is by learning about who they are outside of my clinic.

How I thrive

I have always loved hiking and taking long treks. Exploring the outdoors has marked every significant time in my life, and nature has always helped me maintain a healthy perspective on what is important. For our honeymoon, my wife and I spent weeks hiking the national parks of the West. On Maui, we have made a tradition of taking evening walks around the neighborhood at sunset. It is a special reminder of how lucky we are to have each other and to be on the beautiful island of Maui.In college, my best friend and I started backpacking in Yosemite. After that, I couldn't stop. When I am not in clinic, I like to get outside whenever I can. Maui has so much to offer and I love exploring the island. On weekends, my wife and I enjoy the many wonderful events that Maui hosts and, inspired by the farmer's markets here, we have started our own vegetable garden.