OUR TEAM
OUR DOCTORS
Helping You See Better
KASHIF BAIG
MD, MBA, FRCSC
SURGEON
Dr. Kashif Baig is a Cornea, Anterior Segment, Cataract, and Refractive Surgeon in Ottawa. He completed his medical and residency training at McGill University, MBA degree specializing in Health Services Management at McMaster University, and Fellowship training in a high-volume corneal transplant and refractive surgery program in the United States.
Dr. Baig is the Co-Owner/Medical Director of Herzig Eye Institute Ottawa, a cataract and refractive surgery centre, and Founder/Medical Director of Precision Cornea Centre, an academic subspecialty practice. He performs tertiary-level cornea and anterior segment surgeries for adults at The Ottawa Hospital, and for children at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario as a Pediatric Cornea Consultant.
Dr. Baig is the past President of the Canadian Cornea Society, and previously served on the Board of Directors of the McGill University Health Centre in Montreal. He has been involved with several provincial committees on funding for cataract and corneal transplant procedures. Dr. Baig currently serves as a Board Member and the Executive Director of the Sally Letson Foundation, an organization that has promoted the advancement of ophthalmic education in Canada for over half a century. He is also the Founder/Managing Director of Precision Glaucoma Centre, a subspecialty practice in Ottawa.
Dr. Baig is a passionate teacher. He is an Assistant Professor at the University of Ottawa and is involved with teaching medical students, residents, and fellows. Internationally, he serves on examining committees for graduating Ophthalmology residents in countries in the Middle East. During his 10-year tenure as Director of the Cornea, Anterior Segment, and Refractive Surgery Fellowship Program at the University of Ottawa Eye Institute, he established an AUPO-certified clinical cornea fellowship as well as a separate research fellowship program. He has supervised close to 30 clinical and research fellows. In addition, he has delivered over 450 talks, instructed over 40 surgical courses at international meetings, and has won several teaching awards. Dr. Baig routinely travels to operating rooms around the world to teach corneal transplant, complex anterior segment, and refractive surgery to eye surgeons.
Dr. Baig has a strong interest in the research and development of surgical innovations in corneal, anterior segment, cataract, and refractive surgery. He founded the Precision Research Centre, and is also a Clinical Investigator in Regenerative Medicine at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. He has been involved in over 90 research protocols which have resulted in publications in national and international medical journals, and in presentations at scientific meetings around the world. He has performed many Canadian and North American firsts in intraocular lenses, prosthetic implants, and surgical techniques. In addition, his practice serves as a R&D Centre and Centre of Excellence for several industry-leading technology companies in eyecare.
Outside of work, Dr. Baig is an accomplished chauffeur for his children, and is a proud dance and karate dad. He is an enthusiastic fan of Formula 1, UFC, and Star Wars. He enjoys traveling and exploring international cuisines, and most definitely has a weakness for technology/gadgets, useless trivia, and practical jokes.
DARRELL LEWIS
MD, FRCSC
SURGEON
Dr. Darrell Lewis is a Cornea, Anterior Segment, Cataract, and Refractive Surgeon providing patient care at the Precision Cornea Centre. He has served as an Assistant Professor at the Dalhousie University Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, the Medical Director of a Laser Refractive Surgery Centre, and the Medical Director of the Halifax Regional Tissue Bank, Ocular Division. Dr. Lewis completed Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo followed by undergraduate medical training at the University of Ottawa. He completed Ophthalmology residency through Dalhousie University where he was awarded first prize for surgical skills and the recipient of The Francis C. & Emily Yoh Tan Resident award. Subsequently completing fellowship training at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital in Melbourne Australia. He has a strong interest in corneal transplantation, keratoconus, and refractive surgery.
BRITTANY YELLE
OD, PROSE Provider
OPTOMETRIST
Dr. Brittany Yelle is an American Board-Certified optometrist and graduate from the University of Montreal School of Optometry. Throughout her studies, she was an active member of the University’s student council as the Trustee for the American Optometric Student Association (AOSA). As part of her clinical rotations, Dr. Yelle completed a joint internship with EyeDOCS and Precision Cornea Centre in Ottawa, where she gained experience in the diagnosis and management of ocular disease with a concentration in cornea and anterior segment pathology. Dr. Yelle has recently completed a PROSE fellowship through Boston Sight, making Precision Cornea Centre one of the only two centres in Canada to offer patients PROSE devices. Dr. Yelle is passionate about community outreach work. She has travelled with Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity (VOSH) to provide eye care in Ecuador and has participated in University of Montreal’s mobile clinic (Regard collectif) which offers full eye exams to the homeless population. She is also passionate about specialty contact lenses and ocular surface disease, her areas of interest at Precision Cornea Centre.
SAAMA SABETI
MD, MPH, FRCSC
SURGEON
Dr. Saama Sabeti is a Cornea, Anterior Segment, Cataract and Refractive surgeon providing patient care at the Precision Cornea Centre as well as the University of Ottawa Eye Institute. She specializes in corneal transplantation techniques including the Boston Keratoprosthesis. Dr. Sabeti completed her undergraduate and medical training at the University of British Columbia, where she was the recipient of numerous awards including the British Columbia Society of Eye Physicians & Surgeons Prize in Ophthalmology. She subsequently completed her residency in Ophthalmology at the University of Ottawa, followed by fellowship training in Cornea and External Disease at the Université de Montréal. Her passion for research has led her to publish and present studies at numerous national and international meetings. Dr. Sabeti has had a longstanding interest in public health and health policy, leading her to complete a Masters Degree at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health concurrently with her residency. She has a special interest in global health, health systems management, and quality improvement.
Maryam Abtahi
MD, MeD, FRCSC
GLAUCOMA SPECIALIST
Dr. Maryam Abtahi provides medical and surgical care to glaucoma and cataract patients in the Ottawa region. She obtained her Doctor of Medicine in Iran and was trained as an ophthalmologist.
She then completed a second residency at the University of Ottawa Eye Institute where she served as chief resident.
She obtained her Royal College certificate in 2017 and subsequently completed a glaucoma fellowship at the University of Alberta.
Dr. Abtahi is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa and has been involved in research and teaching with medical students and residents.
As a teacher and mentor to young surgeons, she was a recipient of the annual Department of Ophthalmology Surgical Teaching Award. She also completed a Masters of Education Concentration in Health Professions Education from the University of Ottawa.
Dr. Abtahi is dedicated to providing specialized and advanced care to her glaucoma and cataract patients, including micro-invasive glaucoma surgeries.
Garfield Miller
MD, FRCSC
GLAUCOMA SPECIALIST
Dr. Garfield Miller is a cataract and glaucoma subspecialist in Ottawa, providing expert care in some of the most complex cases since 2011. Dr. Miller developed a passion for treating difficult surgical cases during his ophthalmology training in Toronto. He was later accepted into the University of Toronto Glaucoma and Advanced Anterior Segment Surgery (GASS) fellowship. It is widely considered as one of the top training programs of its kind in the world. There he specialized in refractive cataract surgery, advanced glaucoma care and micro-invasive glaucoma techniques. At the University of Ottawa Eye Institute, Dr. Miller is an assistant professor actively involved in teaching and research. Dr. Miller coordinates the glaucoma curriculum for medical students and resident physicians. He also helps to train senior residents in advanced cataract surgical skills. Over the past decade, Dr. Miller has been regularly sought after to deliver lectures and training in cataract and glaucoma surgery at the regional, national, and international levels. He continues to evolve bringing his cutting-edge and compassionate care to patients in pursuit of sight restoration, preservation, and optimization. Outside of medicine, Dr. Miller enjoys family, creativity, and living a life of faith. He greatly values spending time with his wife and two boys. Whenever possible, Dr. Miller dabbles in both the culinary and visual arts. Foundationally, he loves God and is guided by his Christian faith in all aspects of life.
Elias Nour
OD
OPTOMETRIST
Dr. Elias Nour is a Canadian board-certified optometrist with special interest in medical glaucoma, refractive surgery management and anterior segment disease. Dr. Nour completed his studies at the University of Waterloo School of Optometry and Vision Science in 2019 graduating with honours. During his last year of clinical rotations, he completed an externship at the Cherokee Nation Health Center in Oklahoma where he had the privilege of caring for underserved communities while gaining extensive knowledge in glaucoma and ocular disease management. Dr. Nour currently serves as Co-President of the Ottawa Society of Optometrists. He is also an active member of the Ontario Association Optometrists, Canadian Association of Optometrists, as well as the Refractive Surgery Alliance. Along side his dedication to quality patient care, Dr. Nour is also passionate about teaching and currently serves as a clinical instructor for senior optometry students from the University of Montreal.
OUR FELLOWS
Abdullah Al-Kaabi
MD
Cornea Fellow
Mohammed Al-Fayyadh
MD
Cornea Fellow
Andrew Samuel
MD
Clinical Research Fellow
OUR STAFF
The People That Make It Happen