Your Vision: Our Passion

Dr. Blackstien graduated from the New England College of Optometry in 1998. His clinical experience there included specialized training in pediatric optometry and ocular disease in some of the top teaching eye clinics in Boston and Miami. Since graduation, he has been in private practice in downtown Toronto and has also practiced in Thornhill since 2008.

Dr. Blackstein has also worked with some of Toronto’s top LASER-refractive and cataract surgeons at Toronto’s top refractive surgical centers. He has a passion for educating patients about the prevention and management of eye disease and vision disorders and is well known for his warm personality and patient-centric eye care model.

Dr. Amardeep Dhanjal is a licensed optometrist with a varied educational background, having studied in both Canada and the United Kingdom. After earning an undergraduate degree at McMaster University, she completed the optometry program at City University in London, England. Upon receiving her certification in England, she then graduated from the University of Waterloo with a Doctor of Optometry degree. She has worked as an optometrist in both England and Canada.

Dr. Dhanjal had an established independent practice located in Shoppers World Mall for 20 years, where she practiced full-scope optometry and gained many loyal patients. She relocated her office in December 2018 and joined the multi-disciplinary LMC team of health care providers, where she continues to provide quality eye care to both her existing patients and new ones.
She is a member of the Ontario Association of Optometrists and is registered with the College of Optometrists.

Dr. Paul Di Nardo graduated from the University of Waterloo School of Optometry and Vision Science in 2016 after completing his Honours Bachelor of Science at the University of Toronto. He completed ocular disease training in Dallas, Texas, at the Parkland Health Hospital ophthalmology department, where he gained extensive experience in managing diabetes, hypertension, glaucoma, and infectious diseases of the eye.

He has had additional training in the hospital’s low vision clinic, and is experienced with contact lenses and refractive surgery co-management. He also keeps up to date on advances in myopia control for children.

Dr. Di Nardo joined Thornhill Optometric Centre in 2010 before entering optometry school, where he gained valuable clinical experience before returning to the practice as an Optometrist in 2016. He joined LMC with the rest of the Thornhill Optometric Team in May 2018 and continues to work across several other southern Ontario clinics.

Although his main passion is to improve his patient’s lives via vision care, Dr. Di Nardo enjoys spending time with family and friends when he is not in the clinic. He also enjoys experiencing and learning new things through travel and cooking (mainly because it leads to eating).

Dr. Lindsay Gallowitz was born and raised in Richmond Hill and has been a part of the LMC family since 2018. She completed her Doctor of Optometry degree with honors at the University of Waterloo School of Optometry in 2017, after receiving her Bachelor of Science Degree in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Guelph.

Dr. Gallowitz was trained in ocular disease management and therapeutics at the Lebanon Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Pennsylvania. She completed clinical rotations in contact lenses, binocular vision, and pediatric care. She has also travelled on mission trips to Peru and Honduras, where she provided eye examinations and glasses to patients with limited access to eye care.

Dr. Gallowitz likes to spend her free time with family, reading a good book, or hitting the ski slopes in the winter. She looks forward to keeping your eyes healthy and ensuring they can see at their best!

Dr. Steven Gold graduated from the University of Waterloo School of Optometry in 1980. His clinical experience includes specialized training in contact lenses, laser co-management, ocular disease, and diabetic eye care.

Dr. Gold had an established independent practice in Vaughan for more than 40 years, where he practiced full-scope optometry and gained many loyal patients over the years. In 2018 he relocated his office and joined the multi-disciplinary team of health care providers at LMC.

He continues to work and provide high-quality eye exams to both his existing patient base and new visitors to the clinic. Dr. Gold is dedicated to his patients and has a great passion for what he does.
In his spare time, Dr. Gold enjoys travelling, biking, camping, and spending time with his family.

Dr. Darryl Sher emigrated to Canada from South Africa in 2004. His first foray into the eye care industry was as a supplier of optical frames. While working in this role, he completed an International Optometric Bridging Program (IOBP) at the School of Optometry in Waterloo and subsequently started practicing optometry in Ontario.

Over the years, Dr. Sher has acquired several optical businesses, all of which are professionally run. LMC is very fortunate to have Dr. Sher and his wealth of experience on Thornhill clinic’s optometric team. With our shared values and strong belief in providing the best eye care services, we hope to make a meaningful difference to the people in our community.

Dr. Ramina Nissan is a certified Doctor of Optometry (O.D.) by both the Canadian Board of Optometry and the American National Board of Optometry. She received her O.D. degree in 2016 from Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago with honors for providing excellent patient care throughout her clinical rotations.

She completed her training at the Illinois Eye Institute in Chicago as well as at the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Detroit. She also served as, an on staff member of the ophthalmology department at Adventist GlenOaks Hospital in Chicago providing emergency eye care & on-call patient care, gaining ample experience in management and treatment of diverse ocular diseases.

She is an active member of the Canadian Optometric Association, Association of Optometrists of Quebec and American Optometric Association.

She practices full scope of Optometry and has a particular interest in ocular disease, including ocular complications of diabetes, hypertension, thyroid disease, and infectious & inflammatory ocular diseases.

With a compassionate approach, Dr. Nissan consistently strives to provide exceptional patient-centric eye care, effective communication with all healthcare professionals involved and is well integrated in the multidisciplinary facilities of LMC since joining in August of 2017.

To help better serve our diverse community of patients in Montréal, she is fluent in English, French, Aramaic and Arabic.

Dr. Michelle Yip completed her Bachelor of Science degree in Optometry from the University of Manchester. Furthering her training in Ocular Therapeutics and Prescribing for Disorders of the Eye at Aston University, she has 10 years’ experience working in a hospital specialising in contact lenses, glaucoma, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and retinal and anterior segment imaging. She is board certified by the Canadian Examiners in Optometry and accredited in prescribing pharmaceuticals in both Ontario and the UK.

She is a member of the Canadian Association of Optometrists (CAO) and the Ontario Association of Optometrists (OAO).

Over the last 5 years, Dr. Yip has worked in the Greater Toronto Area, where she was born and raised, acquiring an array of experience in various fields of Optometry. She has a special interest in managing ocular diseases such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, myopia, and dry eye disease. Dr. Michelle Yip joined LMC Optometry & Eye Care in August 2022 and currently manages patients in our Ottawa clinic.

In her spare time, she enjoys running and has recently developed an interest in growing her own vegetables, tending to her new garden, and sampling dishes from her harvest. To help better serve our diverse community of patients in Ottawa, she is fluent in
English and conversational in Cantonese.

Dr. Avjit Shahi completed her undergraduate studies at Loyola University Chicago majoring in biology. Next, she gained her optometric training at the Illinois College of Optometry, graduating in 2015. During her clinical internships, Dr. Shahi rotated
through the University of Kentucky, William Chappell Jr Veteran Outpatient Clinic in Daytona Beach, FL, and the Illinois Eye Institute in Chicago.

After graduation, Dr. Shahi pursued her residency at the Louis Stokes Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio, specializing in ocular disease. She received training in contact lenses, and the management of ocular conditions such as glaucoma, dry eye and diabetic/macular degeneration diseases.

Dr. Shahi has worked many years in private practice and has moved to Brampton after marrying a Brampton native to set roots in this community. Outside the clinic, Dr. Shahi loves to travel, read, exercise, spend time with family/friends, and enjoys a good cupcake!