Dr. Chao was born and raised in Santa Monica, California. She graduated with distinction from Stanford University and was awarded the Janet M. Glasgow Memorial Achievement Citation. She earned her MD and Ph.D. at the Yale University School of Medicine, earning her Ph.D. in Neuroscience with a prominent neuroscientist, Eric Nestler, MD, Ph.D. Upon completion of her internship at Stanford, she continued her residency and vitreoretinal fellowship at the Doheny Eye Institute/USC. During her residency and fellowship, she was awarded the Fight for Sight Postdoctoral Fellowship, the Knights Templar Eye Foundation Research Grant, and the Heed Foundation Fellowship. During that time, she also initiated a research fellowship at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in the laboratory of Marianne Bronner, Ph.D., a recognized world expert in developmental/stem cell biology. Dr. Chao has been on the faculty at UW since 2009.
Since joining the faculty, Dr. Chao has published papers and presented work at national meetings. She has also served as a peer-reviewer for several journals, including Ophthalmology and Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. When not involved in patient care, Dr. Chao has an active laboratory dedicated to the study of retinal degenerative disorders.
Dr. Chao offers both medical and surgical treatments for vitreoretinal diseases. She has a particular interest in patients with retinal degeneration. She enjoys working with residents and fellows in the clinic, in the operating room, and in her lab. She also enjoys speaking with community groups and sharing her knowledge of current advances in eye disease treatment. Undergraduates also participate in research in Dr. Chao’s lab.
She is dedicated to bringing the highest quality of care to her patients by offering the most up-to-date diagnostic and treatment options to her patients. She enjoys partnering with her patients in their care, listening to them, and keeping them informed of the latest in current research regarding challenging retinal diseases.
In her spare time, Dr. Chao enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, travelling and playing the violin.