Our Providers

Dr. Son Ha Yu, a board-certified general and vascular surgeon, was born in Detroit, Michigan. Dr. Yu has over a decade of vein treatment experience. In addition to his work at Desert Vein & Vascular Institute, Dr. Yu is on staff at Eisenhower Medical Center, Desert Regional Medical Center and JFK Memorial Hospital. Dr. Yu came to the valley in 2007 upon completing his vascular surgery fellowship. He lives in Palm Desert with his wife and two children. Dr. Yu works hard to exceed the high expectations you have of a top-tier surgeon. By accepting nothing but high-quality, precise work from himself and his staff, Dr. Yu helps define Desert Vein and Vascular Institute as the top location in the Coachella Valley for vein treatment. In his spare time, Dr. Yu enjoys spending time with his family and playing golf.

Dr. Pushpinder Sivia was born in Oakland, California. He is board-certified in vascular surgery and moved to the Palm Springs area in 2012. Dr. Sivia treats disorders of circulation as well as venous disease. He has been a presenter at national vascular conferences and has published articles in medical journals about vascular disease. Upon completing his fellowship in vascular surgery in 2012, together with Dr. Yu, formed Desert Vein and Vascular Institute. He and his wife live with their two daughters in Rancho Mirage.

Dr. Nina Grewal and her team are committed to helping patients suffering from the effects of varicose veins enjoy a better quality of life.

Dr. Grewal grew up in the Pacific Northwest and completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Washington before completing medical school at the University of Utah. After completing her General Surgery and Vascular Surgery training, Dr. Grewal began practice in Orange County in 2010. Since that time, she has focused her practice on the evaluation and treatment of venous disease and has performed over a thousand vein procedures to date.

Dr. Grewal joined the practice in 2016 and helped form Empire Vein Specialists. In her free time, Dr. Grewal enjoys spending time with her family, running, mountain climbing, and yoga.

Dr. John Lee is a board-certified general and vascular surgeon. Upon completing his vascular surgery fellowship, Dr. Lee joined Desert Vein and Vascular Institute in 2015. He was born in Seoul, South Korea. He graduated from medical school with high honors before specializing in vascular surgery. Dr. Lee chose this route because of the strong compassion he feels for patients with vascular diseases. In addition to his medical training, Dr. Lee has published articles in multiple national journals and presented research before vascular associations. When away from the office, he enjoys surfing and snowboarding, as well as watching movies. Now residing in Rancho Mirage with his wife and two children, Dr. Lee treats all of his patients like family.

Dr. Trevor DerDerian is a board-certified surgeon who grew up on the Gulf Coast in Tarpon Springs, Florida and completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Miami. After finishing his general surgery training in New York City, Dr. DerDerian went on to specialize in Vascular and Endovascular surgery at West Virginia University. He has written numerous peer reviewed articles and presented his work at national conferences. Dr. DerDerian has a passion to bring comprehensive, cutting edge and minimally invasive vascular services to the East valley. Dr. DerDerian resides with his family in the beautiful city of La Quinta and enjoys the outdoors, surfing, snowboarding and his new found hobby of pickle ball.

Dr. Kush Sharma is a vascular surgeon who grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan. He was part of the inaugural medical school class at Central Michigan University and went on to complete an integrated vascular surgery residency at Spectrum Health/Michigan State University College of Medicine in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During his training, he wrote several peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. He was invited to present at numerous national and international conferences.

Dr. Sharma has a special interest in performing minimally invasive procedures to allow for the fastest recovery of his patients. His priority is to treat all his patients like they are part of his family. In his spare time, he enjoys playing golf, tennis, and traveling. He and his wife live in Palm Springs.

Dr. Bertrand Janne d’Othée is a board-certified interventional radiologist with over 20 years of experience. Originating from the French-speaking southern region of Belgium, he earned his Doctor of Medicine and completed his Residency in Radiology at the Université Catholique de Louvain in Brussels. After moving to the East Coast of the United States in 2000, he worked as an Interventional Radiologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital, where he also was Director of the Varicose Veins Program, and in the University of Maryland Medical System, before becoming the Chief of Interventional Radiology at Baystate Health. He has held faculty positions at Harvard Medical School, University of Maryland School of Medicine, and lastly as a full Professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Throughout his career, Dr. Janne d’Othée has written over 160 publications, including more than 60 peer-reviewed articles. He also received his Master of Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health and his Master of Business Administration from the University of Maryland.

Dr. Janne d’Othée and his wife have four children and tremendously enjoy the many opportunities Southern California offers, including running, beach activities, skiing, and more, and he speaks Spanish fluently. Certification, Education, and Professional Memberships

Dr. Kimberly C. McFarland is board-certified in Internal Medicine. Dr. McFarland completed undergraduate studies at the University of California Los Angeles and pursued medical studies at Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara where she also enhanced her Spanish language fluency. Dr. McFarland attended the New York Medical College Pre-Internship Program at Richmond University Medical Center in Staten Island and then completed her residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship training in Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at the SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Dr. McFarland began practicing vascular and interventional radiology at USA Vein Clinics in various locations throughout New York City. Upon returning to her native California, Dr. McFarland continued vascular and interventional radiology at Kern Radiology in Bakersfield.

Dr. McFarland leads the Empire Vein Specialists team in Temecula in passionate pursuit of helping patients live more productive, pain-free lives through non-invasive outpatient treatments. She is a diehard UCLA Bruins sports fan and enjoys the outdoors and playing dinosaurs with her toddler.

Dr. George T. Pisimisis has over 20 years of experience in vascular and general surgery, most recently as an Associate Professor of Vascular Surgery in the Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery department at The University of Texas.

After earning his medical degree at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece), he served various fellowships at medical centers including Baylor College of Medicine, UNMC, and Mayo Clinic.

Dr. Pisimisis has an extensive academic background including Medical Director of the Fenestrated Endovascular Aortic Repair Program at Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, medical director of the Vascular Ultrasound lab at Baylor College of Medicine, and Associate Professor in Interventional Radiology at The University of Texas. The doctor has been active on several committees including Acute Critical Care at the UT MD Anderson Cancer Center and the Pelvic Sarcoma Center of Excellence.

The doctor has been recognized with numerous esteemed honors and awards. The University of Nebraska named him Outstanding Surgery Resident, while UT MD Anderson Cancer Center ranked him in the 2018 Top 1% physician performers. While attending National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Dr. Pisimisis received honors for ranking in the top 5% of his class. Mayo Clinic awarded Dr. Pisimisis with the Clinical Research Excellence Award, in the Division of Vascular surgery.

With over 40 peer reviewed research articles and supervision of more than 90 residents and fellowship mentees, Dr. Pisimisis has significantly contributed to the professional development of young surgeons and the medical community.

EVS is excited to welcome Dr. Pisimisis to the Fullerton team and see the amazing work he does for our patients.

Dr. Omar Z. Tahir joins our team of vascular physicians, having recently practiced in the Greater Chicago area and later Quincy, Illinois for many years. His medical background includes experiences in Family Medicine and General Surgery, prior to a Fellowship in Vascular Surgery and a shift toward a vascular specialty in 2015.

The doctor earned his medical degree at Charles University in Prague, one of Europe’s oldest universities and most picturesque campuses. He also enjoyed a Residency with the University of Kansas Medical Center and a Fellowship in their Burn and Wound unit in the Department of Plastic Surgery.

Previously, Dr. Tahir completed postgraduate studies at Sacred Heart Hospital in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville. He completed his Fellowship in Vascular Surgery at RUSH University Medical Center in Chicago.

Dr. Tahir recently made his way West, following years of practice throughout the Midwest and study abroad. The Empire Vein team is pleased to welcome him into the Victorville office.

Dr. John York is committed to bettering the lives of people who suffer from varicose veins. A board-certified Interventional and Diagnostic Radiologist, with over two decades of practice, he is excited to be a member of the Empire Vein Specialists team.

Dr. York completed his undergraduate studies at the United States Naval Academy, first serving his country in Naval Aviation before completing medical school at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. He then completed his residency and fellowship training at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and hit the ground running. Since then, Dr. York has spent almost 20 years practicing Vascular and Interventional Radiology, serving a variety of institutions from large military hospitals, to combat hospitals, to outpatient vascular access centers. A constant theme in his career has been his laser-like focus on doing what is best for the patient.

Over the years, Dr. York has become a member of many esteemed organizations, such as the Society of Interventional Radiology, and the Western Angiographic and Interventional Society. While in medical school, he was selected for the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. Additionally, he has published over a dozen academic peer-reviewed articles and received numerous military honors for his performance in leadership positions on the Board of Directors and as the Executive Officer at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Virginia, and as the Officer in Charge of the Expeditionary Medical Facility in Djibouti, Africa.

Dr. York joined Empire Vein Specialists in 2022 and is the head practitioner at the Chula Vista office. In his free time, he enjoys surfing, hiking, volunteering at the local animal shelter, and spending time with his family.