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Our surgical services include a range of specialty areas. We offer personalized, advanced care. To learn more, call 310-825-2631.
The Department of Surgery at UCLA provides the highest quality surgical care available, is nationally ranked in surgical education, and brings leading-edge science to patient care. We are committed to providing expert, comprehensive and compassionate care and we take great pride in being able to share some of our patients' stories with you.
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The Teacher and the Surgeon
While being treated for breast cancer at UCLA Health, elementary school teacher Heather Hatchman made a pact with her surgeon. If she had a smooth recovery, Farnaz Haji, MD would come speak in front of her classroom.
Cerritos Family Grateful for Lung Transplant
Watch the story of Jermell Robinson, who received an organ transplant through the UCLA Health Lung Transplant Program with commentary from his surgeon, Dr. Abbas Ardehali.
Patient Testimonials
May 10, 2024
Throughout the challenging period of my husband's liver transplant evaluation and subsequent treatment, Andrew provided more than just medical support; he offered us hope and comfort that was more than we could ever ask for.
His commitment to his patients was evident in every interaction. Whether it was navigating the complex medical procedures, explaining care protocols, or just offering a reassuring word when we needed it most, Andrew was there with unwavering support. His professional demeanor, combined with his genuine empathy and kindness, not only eased our journey but significantly impacted our experience and outcome in the most positive way. When we look back, Andrew was always there.
I believe that such dedication deserves recognition as it exemplifies the core values of your institution. Andrew's actions have left a lasting impression on our family, and we are profoundly grateful for his presence during our time of need. Please share this compliment with Andrew and the transplant team.
Also, thank you UCLA for fostering such a supportive and compassionate environment at your facility. It is sincerely appreciated by the families like ours, who benefit immensely from it.
February 7, 2024
A big THANK YOU to Dr. Murray Kwon and his team for a very successful bypass surgery for my husband. Everything went smoothly and I was kept informed of the procedure's progress.
December 5, 2023
Dr. Kevork Kazanjian and his team are absolutely amazing and I am very thankful for the results of the sigmoid colectomy he performed on me. He truly is an amazing and gifted doctor with a very friendly and supportive team. I'm grateful and feel lucky to have come under his care.
October 24, 2023
I saw Dr. James Wu for papillary thyroid cancer, and he was the third doctor I met with to discuss my surgery and options. He took his time, explained everything thoroughly, and was willing to take the most conservative approach, which was to remove my isthmus only. He answered a couple of questions I had by email almost immediately during the pre-op stage, and on the day of surgery, he met with me before surgery and assured me that all would go well. I really felt confident that I was in the best of hands.
Following surgery, I was relieved to find out that they were able to remove only the isthmus, as I had hoped for, and he felt confident they got all margins. He called me 2 days later as soon as he had the pathology results to let me know it was successful, and I was able to get on a plane and go on a work trip only 5 days post-surgery. My incision and scar is small and minimal, and overall I am just so happy with Dr. Wu's level of care, ease of scheduling appointments, etc. I will need to follow up with him over the next several years and there's no other doctor I would want to go through this process with than Dr. Wu. Also, the surgical center at UCLA and the whole nursing team were so organized, clean, caring, and attentive, I never felt like just another number.
So happy with my experience and happy to be completely healthy now. For any thyroid needs, I would highly recommend Dr. Wu.
September 28, 2023
The professionalism, conscientious care, and kindness of Dr. Charles Tseng--and his incredible team--meant the world during my recent outpatient surgery. Beyond Dr. Tseng's superlative skill, I was also especially grateful for my anesthesiology team, Dr. Lauren Vajda and Dr. Jane Moon, for their warmth and thorough consideration of my history. A certain Dr. Tanya (apologies, I don't know her last name) also took special care, even holding my hand as the anesthesia was administered.
To all who participated, my sincere thanks for the amazing work you do--everyday!
July 14, 2023
I wish there were more Dr. David Rigberg's in the world!! A great doc & a great human being!!!
June 8, 2023
Dear Liver Transplant Team,
I am writing this letter as a token of appreciation and gratitude for the outstanding care and services that you have provided to my loved one during their recent liver transplant procedure.
I cannot express my happiness and gratitude in words for the exceptional care that was given to the patient. From the pre-operation stages to the post-operation care, everything was managed with great professionalism and compassion.
The entire team was extremely supportive, accommodating, and empathetic towards the patient's condition. They always kept us informed about the progress of the surgery and the post-operation recovery. The team also provided us with the necessary information and resources for the patient's post-operation care.
We are truly thankful for the attention and care that was provided to my loved one in the transplant surgery. We also want to acknowledge the dedication and hard work that the team exhibited during the entire process.
We know that this was not an easy operation and appreciate the commitment and dedication that the entire team put into delivering the best possible care to the patient.
Thank you so much for the support, care, and attention that was provided during this process. The team's hard work and compassion have been remarkable, and we are forever grateful.
Sincerely,
Stephanie C.
Learn More About the Liver Transplant Program
June 2, 2023
I want to send a big thank you to every staff member that assisted me throughout my visit to the Ambulatory Surgery Center. From the reception desk staff in the waiting room, to the nurse who helped me tie up the back of my hospital gown, to the nurse who wheeled me out when I was leaving -- AND EVERYONE IN BETWEEN -- I am very grateful for having been treated with dignity, respect and a smile. From the nursing team, to the anesthesiology team, to the surgical team, to the overnight team, there were so many people I interacted with, all of whom are at the top of their game, that I don't want to name any names for fear of leaving someone out. So I will send this commendation out to everyone. Thank you.
May 23, 2023
THANK YOU DR. DOUGLAS G. FARMER FOR YOUR MAGICAL HANDS
I am very grateful for my son being under the care of such an experienced and professional doctor. Thank you for performing his surgery and for improving his quality of life. Dear Dr Farmer, the care you showed towards him is truly remarkable. A million thanks to you and all your team. Thank you so much for your kindness and professionalism. I truly admire your work and appreciate you.
On behalf of my family, relatives, friends and acquaintances, who were so concerned about my son, I would like to express my gratitude to all his doctors and nurses at UCLA for their care and professionalism.
Sincerely,
your patientMarch 30, 2023
I'm so grateful and thankful to have found Dr. Steven Farley for taking such good care of me during this time in my life! He and his staff are so professional and have shown me so much kindness, thank you!!!
February 24, 2023
There are not enough stars for Dr. Charles Tseng! His vast expertise, meticulous attention to detail, and absolute artistry are beyond compare. And precisely what I needed following a difficult diagnosis. Last year, at 35, I learned that I had breast cancer. Given my small frame and unusually large tumor, one surgeon went so far as to decline my case. Then, I met Dr. Tseng, who willingly presented different possibilities for reconstruction and gave me hope that I could look normal again. Now, one-month post surgery, I could not be more pleased with the results. His skill and elegant eye made the impossible, possible.
Dr. Tseng is a superlative surgeon and truly a SuperDoctor. My family and I will always be grateful for his care!
February 16, 2023
Casey Weber is the coordinator for Dr. Ginger Slack, but that title doesn't cover a fraction of what she does or how amazing she is. From making sure my insurance authorization came through in time for an urgently-needed procedure, to squeezing me in for a last-minute pre-op video visit to help assuage my concerns about an upcoming surgery, she truly goes above and beyond in how she helps Dr. Slack take care of patients. She is not only efficient and excellent at her job, but wonderfully kind, caring and supportive to patients like me, who are going through scary diagnoses and major procedures. She is an incredible asset to UCLA Health and I'm so fortunate that she works with my surgeon. Thank you, thank you, Casey!!
January 11, 2023
Thank you Dr. Sammy Saab for helping me heal my liver with your excellent care. Your expertise on my
liver diagnosis is appreciated and thank you for your professionalism.May 7, 2022
I love how caring and compassionate Dr. MaryKwaan is. She goes above and beyond for me as her patient. She continued to see me after my hospitalization and will be doing my ileostomy surgery. I never met someone like her before.
May 2, 2022
I would like to thank all of the doctors and nurses and staff that attended to me during my out patient total thyroidectomy experience with Dr. Avital Harari. I regret not making note of everyone's names so that I could acknowledge each person individually as they were each outstanding in kindness and empathy. I will mention my night nurse who measured the circumference of my neck every hour who never waned in her humor for the situation of my sleepless night, not to mention I was denied water for 14 hours, so I was entering a pretty desperate state of nerves by morning when the doctor said the hematoma seemed to be reabsorbing successfully so that reopening the dissection wouldn't be necessary. I mention this because even in this anxious circumstance, because everyone was so kind, it was simply realistic to stay calm about my discomfort.
When I was being discharged I asked the "care coordinator" if she could explain why everyone seemed to have positive attitudes about their jobs. She said that upper management extended the respect of confidence in people doing their best and thus the hospital culture was one of trust and not judgement. This seemed to have an effect on the patient population, if I can speak generally based upon myself.
I have never had a hospital experience like this and I wish all the staff continued professional satisfaction. That above all insures the excellent quality of care that a patient receives. Thank you all.
March 26, 2022
I want to thank Dr. Joe Hines, Ingrida Klausa and all of his team for the wonderful care my son received while a patient at UCLA Medical Center. Not only was his surgery performed flawlessly without complications but the entire team kept me informed during and after surgery and checked on him several times during his stay. Dr. Hines took the time to come to Maddie's room to speak with me after surgery and saw my son the following day on the unit. We never felt rushed to be discharged, as a matter of fact everyone was encouraging us to stay if we weren't comfortable going home. I have been an RN for over 35 years and believe me when I tell you this was incredible care and I'm so thankful my boy was in such great hands.
March 8, 2022
Dr. Ginger Slack is a good listener and she's very personable. Her bedside manner makes me feel comfortable to talk with her regarding an upcoming procedure. I'd like to compliment her and her team for taking good care of me. Overall, I'm very satisfied with the care that I've been receiving from UCLA Medical Center.
February 22, 2022
I am so grateful to Dr. Charles Tseng and his team for the excellent care, compassion and expert skill demonstrated during my mastectomy and DIEP flap reconstruction. Dr. Tseng is an artist. I really feel like myself after my mastectomies. I don't feel like I had to lose my breasts. The shape, size and feel of my breasts is remarkable similar to before my mastectomies.
March 11, 2020
I was diagnosed with Graves' disease that was roughly 7 years ago. I was being taken care of by my primary care doctor for the first 3 years. Then I saw an endocrinologist and was treated for another 3 years. He also discovered a nodule through my ultrasound, in which we did a biopsy that came back negative for cancer and all of the negative stuff. However, we did a checkup about a year after and the nodule grew very large. I was then recommended to Dr. Yeh.
In terms of my experience with the clinic and Dr. Yeh, just base on the visit solely everything has been great. Dr. Yeh is very attentive to the details. From my diagnostic to treatment, I felt with everything that I was going through and had to deal with it all went very smoothly and was great. Dr. Yeh made sure that my treatment plan was specific to me and not put in a general sense. I wasn't too worried about it (my surgery) in the beginning, but it got closer I got very anxious. They said that it's better to remove it all to make sure it's not cancer. It makes sense to remove a large abnormal nodule from my thyroid, but I was nervous the week before my surgery, as you never know what could happen. I have kids so that was the real worry for me. Even knowing that this was a quite safer and much minor surgery to many it still worried me, but at that point what could you do, I knew I had to get it removed. However, everyone there made me feel great and asked questions making sure I felt okay. From the check-in process at the hospital to the recovery process the team made sure I felt comfortable and at ease. They used the right words to comfort me, they made sure to not use triggering words-- especially with me I'm someone who tends to over-analyze everything, so using one wrong word could have thrown me off. They made me felt at ease, so at that point, I couldn't go back and there was not a reason to not continue with this surgery. My surgery was January 31st, it went well and I don't remember anything much from it. I had some neck pain on the side of my neck and not really near the incision when I woke up, but it didn't bother me too much I would describe it as being sore. I was able to go home the next day, so I would say my health condition was good. I did have to take off almost 3 weeks from work but that’s understandable because my job is labor-intensive so to resume I had to be 100% again. I feel good now and I know I need to adjust my medication and everything but my life does feel normal again.
Reflecting on this whole process, something I would change is that I probably would have asked to see a specialist endocrinologist a lot sooner, but everything worked out. I understand that my primary may have not sent me sooner as I heard there are people with graves' disease in which by waiting a few years their thyroid goes back to normal. However, I feel like it's always better to get something resolved sooner than later, to treat a small nodule than a large nodule. I want to let others know that to take care of yourself and follow-up with your doctors when the problem is small. At least here my Endocrinologist told me when he had referred that Dr. Yeh was one of the best in the nation and it made me feel better, I felt like I was in good hands. Especially going through the actual process itself I would agree so too.
March 16, 2019
I was referred from my thyroid doctor to Dr. Yeh. I actually did my own research and saw all his wonderful reviews, and I also had friends who were his patients so I came in knowing that he was one of the best. I had thyroid nodules that were growing which caused my goiter to grow larger to the point where I was having trouble swallowing food and felt pressure in my throat. Before surgery, I went to his clinic and Dr. Yeh was very sweet. He explained the basics and general details of the procedure such as the possible side effects in a way that was easy for me to understand. He recommended that I get a complete thyroidectomy, since my goiter was quite large.
I wasn't afraid of undergoing any surgery or operation, but I was worried about whether I was doing the right thing for my body. I've had this goiter for many years and I have never had problems with my thyroid function, so I was wondering if I really needed to remove my entire thyroid and start taking thyroid medication for the rest of my life. After surgery now, I know that I did the right thing. I am sure that my goiter would have continued to grow and those that I knew on thyroid medication for life did not have any problems. Dr. Yeh also explained that if anything spread to my parathyroid glands I could even have problems with my calcium levels too and not just my thyroid hormone levels.
The surgery itself was very well done. I was very impressed because the operation did not impact my voice which I was worried about. My cousin underwent thyroidectomy by a different surgeon and the operation has still affected her voice even many years after. I truly believe that Dr. Yeh is the best. He told me that my operation would be 2.5 hours but he was finished in only 1.5 hours. The only difficult portion of the operation was my body's reaction to the anesthesia, but I had no problems with the surgery itself. I have scar tissue right now inside my throat which puts pressure on my vocal cords as well as visible scar tissue but I know that it takes time for the scar to heal and it is slowly getting better and fading. I started thyroid medication and I feel that my body still needs time to get used to it. I am waiting until May for labs to test whether the medication dosage is adequate for my body.
I truly believe he is one of the best. From my experience, he is very fast and accurate. I cannot speak for all patients with different conditions but for me, I was very happy.
August 23, 2018
I had a pheochromocytoma tumor removed from my adrenal gland. The doctors and staff were very knowledgeable and skilled in their particular field and asked me a lot of questions about my particular situation. They also followed up and prepared me really well for the surgery, including the anesthesiologists and other staff members who were involved in my surgery.
The surgery itself went very well, and recovery went as expected. I had no problems with the surgery. There is pain at the excision area, but it has gradually decreased after 2 weeks and I know the pain will be gone soon. Ever since the surgery, I have been checking my blood pressure and glucose levels because my blood pressure was high before surgery. The hospital stay was very good and everyone took care me of very well. This particular team and hospital in general were very knowledgeable and highly skilled. All the doctors and other staff members knew what they were doing and were very emotionally supportive so I wasn’t too anxious or stressed going into my surgery. The surgery went well overall and I don’t think there were any issues. For me personally, I am highly thankful for this particular surgeon team. I hope that my particular case will be a good example for future patients.