Tara Alexandra Mccannel, MD, PhD

We came here thinking Dr McCannel was one of the best and due to UCLA Stein’s reputation. Unfortunately we were wrong. If you have a serious eye condition (diabetic retinopathy) look elsewhere. The care was average at best. The place is always packed. Wait time is an average of 2 hours. Dr. McCannel was always rushed never spent time with us nor offered any detailed explanation. She had her staff do most of the treatments and procedures. Instead of suggesting or coming up with a detailed treatment plan she would ask us what we wanted to do?? What we wanted to do? We responded to be as proactive as possible to protect the eyes but she would always suggest “waiting” to see what happens next. Waiting? You don’t wait with a severe case of diabetic retinopathy! It’s like she was just waiting for the eyes to bleed so she could perform a vitrectomy instead of trying to prevent the bleeding in the first place. We ended up moving to an amazing doctor at USC Roski Eye Institute who described the… care we received at UCLA as “ok/fine or standard. “Standard” isn’t something you want to hear when you have serious eye disease and are at risk of losing your vision. To top it off our new doctor noticed areas McCannel didn’t laser during a vitrectomy of one of the eyes?? That is unheard of - best time to laser is when you are doing a vitrectomy. Also - McCannel told us we couldn’t do laser anymore we were all layered out yet at USC we had plenty of room to put in more laser and thank god we did as it prevented further bleeding. Do your research and listen to the other reviews on Dr McCannel. We wish we did and and pray we didn’t make the switch too late in the game.

I feel very blessed to have had Dr. Tara McCannel as my Eye Surgeon and Physician.. Her qualification and reputation are without equal. Her efficiency and kindness provide encouragement and understanding.