When you read our Align Surgical testimonials, you will often hear patients mention our support staff with equally high praise as they have for our doctors. This is because each member of Align Surgical’s staff, from our RNs and physician assistant to our patient coordinator and office manager, are hand-chosen for their experience working specifically with the transgender community.

Each team member is a highly sensitive and skilled individual who has the capacity for unconditional acceptance, trust and compassion. Our team is overflowing with knowledge and maturity, as well as the ability to add humor to the conversation, setting clients at ease, especially if they are feeling anxious about their surgery.

Thus the overall environment at Align Surgical Associates Inc. is like a sanctuary and a home away from home. Our team provides specific training for all employees in the nuanced techniques that are used in top and bottom surgery, so you will receive an unprecedented atmosphere of support as you embark on the journey of a lifetime.

Dr. Arya Akhavan

Research Director

Dr. Arya Akhavan is an award-winning clinical research scientist, with an extensive history and prior surgical experience in plastic surgery. As a dedicated advocate for and member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Dr. Akhavan focuses much of his research on improving techniques and outcomes in gender-affirming surgery, as well as perceptions and mistreatment of LGBTQIA+ patients and medical professionals. He has formally presented his research work at multiple national and international plastic surgery and research conferences, and continues to earn awards for the quality of his studies.

Dr. Akhavan remains a lifelong teacher, continuing to mentor LGBTQIA+ medical students and residents in their pathway to becoming plastic surgeons. He remains actively involved in national and international plastic surgery societies, as an educator, researcher, and mentor, and continues to work with diversity, equity, and inclusion offices and organizations to improve LGBTQIA+ representation in the profession of plastic surgery.

Debby Anziano

PA-C

Debby Anziano PA-C is a certified Physician Assistant specializing in Plastic Surgery. She has been working with Dr. Satterwhite for the past five years and has found her passion serving the transgender community. For those not familiar with Physician Assistants, they are medical providers licensed by the State Medical Board who work collaboratively with all healthcare professionals.

Debby was raised on the East Coast, graduated from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, and an Associate degree in Radiology. She received her PA degree from University of California, Davis, School of Medicine.

Debby worked for many years in Orthopedic Surgery and Plastic Surgery and has gone on many medical missions in third world countries. Debby says, “Working with the transgender community has been the most amazing, gratifying experience in my long career. I learn something new from patients every day and find our patients to be the most grateful, kindest, appreciative and bravest group of people I’ve ever had the pleasure to take care of and hopefully make a difference in their lives.”

Debby lives in Marin with her husband, 3 children, her dog “Caveman”, (who makes many visits to the hospital with her to visit patients) and her cats. In her free time, she enjoys skiing (having skied competitively in the past), martial arts, paddle boarding, golf, and glass work. She is also working on her private pilot’s license.

Meet Debby Anziano

Teranze Lam

Teranze studied to become a Physician Associate at Touro University Nevada and graduated in the fall of 2019. His work experience since graduating was in the emergency department at San Joaquin General Hospital where he worked with an underserved patient population of many different socioeconomic backgrounds. He received his undergraduate degree majoring in biology and minoring in psychology at UC Merced.

Teranze is excited to begin working at Align Surgical as a Physician Associate.

Michelle Chu

RN, BSN

Michelle Chu RN, BSN is a registered nurse with a little over two years of experience. Her home is in New Jersey and she graduated with a bachelors of science in nursing at Seton Hall University. She had previously worked in a medical surgical unit with remote telemetry through the start and peak of the pandemic.

Michelle joined Align Surgical Associates in July 2021 and is honored to be a part of such a committed and compassionate team.

When she’s not working, she loves to stay home with her two cats and watch tv. She recently moved to California and is really enjoying the food, people and weather in San Francisco.

Jordan Nicole Aceves

RN, BSN

Jordan Nicole Aceves got her BSN from Dominican University of California and became a registered nurse in August 2022. She previously precepted in a medical surgical and telemetry unit and joined Align in October 2022.

Jordan was drawn to Align by the compassionate and inclusive nature of its staff as well as their advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community. She’s excited to be a part of the team!

She recently moved from Sacramento to San Francisco and loves the cool weather. In her free time, Jordan likes to go hiking, try new foods, and explore the city.

Jacqueline Reyes

Clinical Medical Assistant

Jacqueline Reyes is Align Surgical’s Clinical Medical Assistant. She is a San Francisco native, born and raised in the Mission District. From a young age she knew she had a passion for helping others, inspired by her mother who is also in health care. The suffering and struggles of those around her has greatly inspired her to be an advocate for equal rights. Her compassion for the LGBTQIA+ community is what made Align the perfect fit. She has an immense admiration for what the practice does and what they stand for.

In her free time, Jackie enjoys spending time with her family, friends and cat. She loves dancing, going on adventures and anything Disney. Additionally, she prides herself on her Salvadorean roots so you may just find her making some yummy food or even dancing a cumbia with her mom.

Lara Paskey

Administrative Medical Assistant

Lara Paskey, MA is Align’s surgery scheduler and insurance specialist. Lara earned her Master’s in Clinical Psychology from Azusa Pacific University and worked as a Marriage and Family Therapist for five years. After the birth of her daughter, Lara decided a change in professions was necessary and began her new career with Align Surgical.

Lara has a deep passion for helping others and believes equality, compassion, and respect should be offered to all individuals from every walk of life. She feels at home working with the Align team and is honored to be a helping part of the transgender community.

In her free time, Lara enjoys traveling with her family, going to Disneyland, and driving on road trips.

Brandon Hoang

Administrative Medical Assistant

Brandon Hoang is Align’s administrative medical assistant and has worked in the healthcare field for three years. He will help ensure a patient's journey will be smooth throughout their time with Align. Brandon obtained his Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration from California State University, Long Beach. He is very passionate about helping the public and others. Joining Align Surgical Associates, Brandon is able to place that passion towards helping the LGBTQIA+ community.

In Brandon's free time, he enjoys both outdoor and indoor activities such as snowboarding and Disneyland to playing video games and building computers.

Kim Soda

Administrative Medical Assistant

Kim Soda is Align Surgical's Administrative Medical Assistant. She graduated from the University of California, Riverside with a degree in Business Administration. She is from San Diego, California. Kim has always been passionate about supporting the LGBTQIA+ community and jumped at the opportunity to support the community further by working at Align Surgical. Kim is a caring, empathetic, compassionate person who is excited to help the patients on their journey. Kim loves to spend time with her family and friends, traveling, watching Anime and K-Dramas, reading and playing video games.

Rachel Zamora

Administrative Medical Assistant

Rachel Zamora, CPC is a Certified Professional Coder with over 15 years of experience in Medical Billing and became certified as a coder in 2014. She has experience in multiple specialties with the most recent being Orthopedic Surgery, Gynecology, Cardiology, and Radiology. Rachel joined Align Surgical Associates in January of 2020 and says, “I knew right away this was the company I was meant to be at. I feel grateful to work with such amazing and caring Doctors.”

In her free time Rachel enjoys spending time with her son who will be graduating from High School in 2021. She enjoys traveling, fitness, spending time with her family and friends, going to museums and going to Disneyland.

Jennifer Lee

Administrative Medical Assistant

Jennifer Lee is the Operations Administrator at Align Surgical with a background in consulting, people development and office administration.

Jennifer is originally from the East Coast and earned her BA in Sociology from San Diego State University. She is passionate about people and believes that by better understanding the individual, you can begin to understand a world where progress is not only possible, but inevitable.

Align Surgical has provided her the opportunity to work with and learn from an exceptionally talented team, while assisting patients who continue to navigate through the ever-evolving world of transgender healthcare.

By providing direct support to our team and our patients, she is determined to seek the most efficient ways for our practice to work together in serving the transgender community.

When she is not planning her next trip to her beloved Costco, Jennifer enjoys spa days, learning more about her Korean American heritage and making memories with family and friends.

Edith Montes

Administrative Medical Assistant

Edith Montes has joined the Align Surgical team as an Administrative Medical Assistant. She is from Los Angeles, California where she graduated from Cal State Northridge with her Bachelor of Science in Public Health. From an early age, she knew she wanted to dedicate her life to helping others by focusing on guiding people through the barriers in healthcare. She plans on going back to school to become a Registered Nurse.

In her free time, she loves to go on adventures with her family and friends: including hiking, ziplining, and road trips. Along with her mom and sister, they have made it a tradition to go to any amusement park hosting Halloween themed nights to enjoy the thrill of being scared.

Jan Burgess

Administrative Medical Assistant

Jan has been in the medical billing field for three years. In that short time, she has worked with physician groups, whether independent or part of a larger healthcare system that include an expansive breadth of specialties. She is excited to grow in this industry with the Align team. She looks forward to working with a team of caring, compassionate and talented people.

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She loves traveling and trying new food.

Karina Rangel

Administrative Medical Assistant

Karina Rangel is one of our Administrative Medical Assistants at Align Surgical. She was born and raised in South Central Los Angeles, but moved to California City two years ago. She graduated from California State University, Northridge with a Bachelors of Science in Public Health. She has always known she wanted to work in Health care in order to help out people and her community. She plans on returning to school to become a Registered Nurse.

In her free time, she loves spending time with her little family and also driving down to LA to go visit her parents and siblings. As a family, she enjoys going out camping during the summer and fall.

Yajaira Toledo

Administrative Medical Assistant

Yajaira Toledo joined the Align Surgical Team as an Administrative Medical Assistant. She was born in Mexico, but was raised in South Central Los Angeles. From an early age, she was faced with challenges and unrealistic expectations of Gender Roles. That is when she decided she wanted to make a difference in society. She has always been enthusiastic about supporting the LGBTQIA+ Community and is a strong advocate for equality and supporting Minority Rights. Her major is Behavioral and Social Science and hopes to get her Masters in Sociology.

In her free time, she loves road trips, especially with friends! She has made it a tradition for 5 years to go to Crestline, California for Summer and Winter. She really enjoys Architecture and Nature.

Kim Walters

Administrative Medical Assistant

Kim has worked in healthcare for over 25 years in Specialty Care and Family Medicine. She is currently going to school to finish her RN degree while working as an Administrative Medical Assistant at Align Surgical.

She is very passionate about helping others and is excited to work with such a compassionate team at Align that cares for others.

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She loves traveling, going on road trips, hiking, and going to the beach.