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Dr. Harmeet Gill, MD, FRCSC, FACS

Eye Surgeon practicing in Oculoplastic & Facial Surgery

Founder and Medical Director, EyeFACE Institute, Toronto

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Dr. Harmeet Gill, MD, FRCSC, FACS

Introduction

Dr. Harmeet Gill, MD, FRCSC, FACS, is an eye surgeon at EyeFACE Institute in Toronto. He completed his residency in ophthalmology (eye surgery) at the University of Toronto, then a two-year American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) fellowship at Stanford University, the University of California, San Francisco and California Pacific Medical Center. He has been an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of Toronto since 2014 and is a consultant surgeon at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology and was President of the Canadian Society of Oculoplastic Surgery (CSOPS) in 2017–2018.

His practice is limited to the eyelids, the orbit, the tear drainage system, and the brow, midface, face and neck. It covers both medical and cosmetic care: eyelid and orbital conditions that affect vision and comfort, eyelid tumours and reconstruction, tear-duct blockage, thyroid eye disease, and cosmetic eyelid and facial rejuvenation. He has practised since 2012, has performed thousands of procedures, and has more than 15 years of experience with endoscopic surgery.

Approach

Dr. Gill's training began with the eye itself. His planning starts there: how the eyelids protect the eye, spread the tear film and support clear vision, and how the brow, cheek and face frame them. He plans each procedure around the individual's anatomy and goals. He plans for a result that looks like the patient, while keeping the eyelids healthy and working.

Where volume has been lost, he prefers the patient's own tissue. Orbital fat can be repositioned on its own blood supply, and fat from elsewhere in the body can be transferred. Where tissue has descended, he uses endoscopic techniques through small incisions placed within the hairline. Where the skin surface has changed, laser resurfacing can be part of the plan. Anaesthesia ranges from local anaesthetic to general anaesthesia and is chosen for comfort and safety. At consultation, patients hear a direct recommendation, including when surgery is not the right step.

Education and training

He completed undergraduate studies at McGill University and the University of Toronto (BSc, University of Toronto), graduating with Honours and High Distinction with a major in physiology, and then spent two years in the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto. He earned his Doctor of Medicine at McMaster University in 2005, where he received the Witelson Prize in Ophthalmology and the Ivan Smith Scholarship.

He completed his residency and internship in ophthalmology in the Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences at the University of Toronto (2005–2010) and served as Chief Resident in 2009–2010. As a resident he achieved the highest standing on the Toronto Ophthalmology Residents Introductory Course (TORIC) examination (2006), received the Dr. W. Gordon C. Kelly Award (2008), and was one of 25 North American residents selected for the Heed Ophthalmic Foundation Resident and Faculty Retreat (2008). He became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (FRCSC) in ophthalmology in 2010.

From 2010 to 2012 he completed a two-year American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) fellowship in ophthalmic plastic, orbital and reconstructive surgery. His training took place at California Pacific Medical Center, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Hospitals and Clinics, and Stanford University, in San Francisco and Palo Alto. During the fellowship he was a clinical instructor for residents and medical students at the University of California, San Francisco, California Pacific Medical Center, Stanford and affiliated Bay Area hospitals. In 2011 he directed a surgical teaching course at UCSF and co-taught its cadaveric orbital anatomy dissection. In 2012 the residents gave him the Residents' Recognition Award for Excellence in Teaching. His ASOPRS fellowship thesis studied the long-term results of tear-duct bypass surgery (external dacryocystorhinostomy) without tubes.

He became a Diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology in 2012 and a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS) in 2013.

Advanced training in endoscopic facial surgery

Dr. Gill has used endoscopic techniques for more than 15 years. From 2010 to 2016 he was a Course Instructor in Endoscopic Forehead and Eyebrow Elevation, a skills-transfer course at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting. He has worked with Dr. Chia Chi Kao and completed Dr. Kao's Ponytail Academy Advanced Course.

PONYTAIL LIFT and PONYTAIL FACELIFT are trademarks of Chia Chi Kao, MD.

Hospital and academic appointments

  • Assistant Professor, Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, University of Toronto (since 2014)
  • Consultant Surgeon, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (since 2012)
  • Clinical instructor and lecturer, University of Toronto teaching hospitals (since 2012)
  • Founder and Medical Director, EyeFACE Institute (since 2015). Surgery takes place at the Yonge Ambulatory Surgery Centre (YASC), an out-of-hospital surgical facility accredited by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO), in the same building as EyeFACE (4789 Yonge Street), with overnight stay and nursing care through the night.
  • Earlier: Full-time Academic Surgeon at Mount Sinai Hospital, and Consultant Surgeon at North York General Hospital and Princess Margaret Hospital (2013–2015)

Leadership

  • President, Canadian Society of Oculoplastic Surgery (CSOPS), 2017–2018
  • Member, Ophthalmology Resident Competency Committee, Postgraduate Medical Education, University of Toronto (2023–present)
  • Co-director, University of Toronto Department of Ophthalmology Alumni Committee (2014–2020)
  • Residency Program Committee Representative, Princess Margaret Hospital (2012–2014)
  • Executive Board Member and Medical Advisor, Benign Essential Blepharospasm Canadian Research Foundation (BEBCRF) support group (2012–2019)

Teaching

Dr. Gill has taught eye surgeons at every career stage:

  • Practising surgeons: at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting from 2010 to 2016, he was Course Director of the Oculoplastics Skills Transfer Course and a Course Instructor in Endoscopic Forehead and Eyebrow Elevation. In 2018 he directed a botulinum toxin injection skills-transfer course at the Canadian Ophthalmological Society Annual Meeting.
  • Continuing education: he was Course Director and Meeting Planning Chair of "Eyeopener 2013: Removing the Blindfold on Blepharospasm", an accredited University of Toronto continuing-education program.
  • Fellows: he was Co-Preceptor of the University of Toronto's ASOPRS fellowship from 2015 to 2023.
  • Residents and students: since 2012 he has taught medical students and ophthalmology residents in the clinics and operating rooms of University of Toronto teaching hospitals, and he has lectured in the Royal College examination review for senior ophthalmology residents.

Research and publications

Dr. Gill has authored or co-authored 20 peer-reviewed journal articles, four textbook chapters and two articles for the American Academy of Ophthalmology's EyeNet magazine. His work spans eyelid cancer and reconstruction, the orbit and thyroid eye disease, tear-duct surgery, and blepharospasm. Selected work:

His research awards include Best Paper (2011) and Best Poster (2008) in the Neuro-ophthalmology Section at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting. His research has been supported by grants from the Pacific Vision Foundation, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Benign Essential Blepharospasm Canadian Research Foundation.

Lectures

Dr. Gill has presented more than two dozen podium and poster abstracts at meetings including the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and the Canadian Ophthalmological Society. Invited lectures include:

  • "Nuances of cosmetic upper and lower blepharoplasty", Grand Rounds, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Toronto (2019)
  • "Cosmetic eyelid surgery – practice pearls for facial surgeons", 16th Annual Middle East Academy of Otolaryngology–Facial Plastic Surgery Conference, Dubai (2019)
  • "Blepharoptosis management", Ophthalmological Society of Jamaica (2018)
  • "Management of orbital cellulitis", Canadian Ophthalmological Society (2018)
  • "Aging of the periocular region", Ontario Medical Association Primary Eye Care Conference
  • Invited podium talks on festoons and on the lid–cheek junction at the CLASS Meeting / Caribbean Dermatology Association 35th Annual Conference in Nassau, Bahamas (November 2026)

Professional memberships and credentials

  • MD (McMaster University)
  • BSc (University of Toronto)
  • FRCSC, Ophthalmology (Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada)
  • FACS (American College of Surgeons)
  • Diplomate, American Board of Ophthalmology
  • Member: American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS); Canadian Society of Oculoplastic Surgery (CSOPS); Canadian Ophthalmological Society (COS); American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO); Ontario Medical Association (OMA)

Service

Dr. Gill has volunteered on medical eye missions to Bacolod, Philippines and Barranquilla, Colombia. He was a co-captain for ORBIS Pull for Sight and has supported the CNIB Eye Van. He served as Executive Board Member and Medical Advisor to the Benign Essential Blepharospasm Canadian Research Foundation (BEBCRF) support group from 2012 to 2019.

A note from Dr. Gill

I've been fascinated by the eyes for as long as I can remember. They are among the most beautiful and functionally important features we have, and so much of who we are shows through them. In medical school I was drawn to the creative and reconstructive side of plastic surgery, and eye surgery let me bring those interests together.

Eyelid surgery is closely tied to the orbit. The orbit houses the eye, and what happens in the eyelids, and beneath them, reflects how the eye and the orbit relate. The orbit also sits at the centre of the face, where the brow meets the upper lid and the lower lid meets the cheek. Many specialties share this area. Understanding it in depth has been my passion for my whole career, and it guides every plan I make with my patients.

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Book a consultationBeautifi financing available

In-person $400 + HST, 45 minutes, includes the Eltraderm 3-Step Skin Care Program (valued at $185) · Virtual $300 + HST, 30 minutes. Your consultation fee, in-person or virtual, is applied in full toward the cost of surgery booked within six months of your consultation.