I was there on Friday Feb 20/26 I had made this appointment for my husband, we saw Dr. Lam he came in and saw what my husband and he recommended to be drained, before he could do anything else, we agreed. He walk out of the room and said to give him a minute that he needed to get everything ready. 2 min later he came back to the room with a woman I'm not sure if it was his manager or biller, but they ask if we had insurance we said no, when we made the appointment we were clear that we were going to be "cash patients". He said "I'm so sorry but I can't do anything" I was confused at first, I ask why, he said because is going to be to expensive. I looked at him and said "ok how much is expansive"!? My husband and I knew since the beginning that it wasn't going to be cheap but we had prepared ourselves for this. He keep saying my hands are tight I can't do the procedure, that is when the nurse or manager or biller I don't know who she was she said, "he is going to need follow ups and possible surgery and it's too pricey". Once again I ask how much, mind you she never looked at me in the eye they keep telling each other "way too expensive". I said I work as a biller for a doctors office If someone ask me for a cash procedure it is my job to let that person how much it is. It is up to the patient if they want to proceed or not. I was loosing my patience but my husband was in pain and he just looked at me and said it's ok let's go. I got out of that office and I was so upset and disappointed. We try to pay for the "consultation" and they said they were billed us. Yesterday I received a bill for 108 dls. Of course we are going to pay. But honestly I felt so discriminated. I will not recommend this office to anyone I talk to my boss and we were both super confused. They don't care about the patients care. We keep asking for an estimate it is out right, at the end we "patients" decide if we want to continue the care or not. I have never told any of my patients to go get insurance and come back, like this Doctor told us. read more

I had some melanoma that needed urgent attention. I was referred to South Bay Surgeons but the doctor was not available so I was reassigned to Dr Lam. Lucky me! I love Dr Lam! He is a no-nonsense professional. He doesn't waste time with chit chat or BS. He walked into the room and said, "Let me see it" ... "ok, we're going to cut that out." He didn't say Hello or waste time, he was right to the point, which I appreciate. I said, "ya, cut that shit out!" He said I would be contacted to schedule a date. I was contacted within days. His staff was extremely helpful making arrangements, as well as smoothing out frustrating insurance hassles. In pre-op on the day of the surgery, Dr Lam stopped by to discuss the procedure and he made me feel very comfortable and confident. Everything went perfectly. I'm very happy about my experience with Dr Lam. I highly recommend him. read more

Dr. Lam may be a good gall bladder surgeon, I don't know. I have no way of measuring his surgical abilities. But his treatment of patients in the office is like a whiling dervish. A tornado. He is too rushed. He does not explain things calmly or clearly. He barges in with his Physician Assistant (who is very nice; his staff is great) and forms quick conclusions without all the necessary information. He also gave a local anesthesia to my friend (the patient) but did not encircle the entire site with lidocaine, nor did he wait for it to take effect. He just started pulling out stitches around the open drain site in her abdomen. The pain was extreme! My friend was screaming and crying and he even asked his assistant to check the bottle to make sure it was the correct medicine. He waited way too long before realizing my friend's stent wasn't working. She waited 6 weeks! She saw him 3 times during that period and it wasn't until the last appointment that he realized something was wrong. This is why I went with her. Because I knew something was wrong. Too many other good doctors in the South Bay. read more

Dr came in with his female assistant. and said, "what's wrong". I told him hernia. He said, "show me". I had a dress on so I was a bit confused. He then said, "stand up and lift your dress". Given there was a female assistant in the room, I complied. He said "show me where". I guided him to where here I have pain. He pushed on my stomach and said, "you don't have a hernia." I explained there was pain when he pushed in my stomach. I then proceeded to give him the ultrasound results that said I was positive for an inguinal hernia. He looked at it, checked my stomach again and said "no hernia". I said my stomach is swollen and I have pain. He felt again and said, "that is fat tissue. Are you sure you are not pregnant"? I said, "if you read the paperwork your office had me fill out to include my surgical history, you'd know that I had a full hysterectomy in 2015 and could not be pregnant". He then said, "I can't do surgery for nothing. Come back in one month or if there is bulging". I explained I was not comfortable with his direction because I had already waited a month in pain just to see him, and I wasn't going to just ignore the fact that I have an ultrasound that is positive for a hernia. What would waiting for a month or bulging do to help me? Waiting a month isn't proactive and could make matters worse. Dr. Lam said M, "OK, get a. CT scan, but I don't think anything is wrong". He then asked my ultrasound paperwork again and asked me who conducted the ultrasound. The paperwork clearly reflected Optum. I told him Optum did it and he said he didn't trust the ultrasound because it was not cu ducted by Torrance Memorial Hospital. There was no dignity provided in this appointment. Having to stand and lift my dress was odd and extremely uncomfortable. I should have been properly prepared for a physical exam. If the female assistant was not in the room, I would not have complied. I left home in tears due to the treatment I received and was completely stressed out for days, and still am now wondering what is wrong with me. There is no way I will return to this doctor and to be frank, I cannot believe his behavior is tolerated. I refuse to accept it. Only gave one start because 0 is not an option. Stay far away from this doctor. He is unethical and extremely rude. His staff is super friendly and I feel bad that they work for this person. read more

First off, all the office assistants are very nice, BUT I would give zero stars if I could!!! So basically the 1 star is for the nurses and office people. I had my 1st visit with Dr Alber Lam, with South Bay Surgeons, on July 11 2023. I thought it was going to be a consultation, because I filled out the form stating I thought I might be getting multiple lipomas. I hadn't ever seen him prior, so I thought he may discuss it with me, and order an ultrasound, or an MRI, or whatever he needed to see how many I might have, and to discuss what my options would be. WRONG!!!! He burst into the room with his female assistant. Rude bedside manner right from the beginning. He asked me what I was there for, even though I filled out a detailed new patient form that stated what I thought my issues were. I started showing him & he felt in two places, and then said I had a genetic issue, and asked what I wanted him to do about it. I was trying to show him other areas but he was not interested. There was NEVER any genetic testing done. How am I supposed to know what to do. I didn't even know how many there were!!!! It scared me immediately!!!! I have some kind of genetic problem?????? Then he asked which ones I wanted him to remove. HOW WOULD I KNOW THAT!! I told him I think I know where at least five are. I told him I was there because it seemed like I was getting more. He didn't care. He told me to pick which ones I wanted him to remove, and mark them before the day of surgery. WTH!!!! I was supposed to pick, and really wasn't even sure where they were???? He said he would only remove 5 and said "no more" twice!!!! I could feel some, but even then, he told me one was just a socket where a prior one was removed. I told him it just started hurting a week prior, and that the one I have removed was over a year ago. He just shook his head no. I told him that I could feel that one. He did not care, and just said it was an old socket. He said he was going to schedule me as an out patient at Little Company of Mary hospital, and then asked what I was allergic to. I told him lots of things. Then he said he can't do any surgery because I didn't know what I was allergic to. I told him I did, and that I put it in the new patient form. I also told him that I had seen another Dr with his group prior, so he should have all the information there. He just got up and started walking out saying a surgery scheduler will be calling me. I checked out feeling so confused. I was distraught when I was checking out at the desk with him beside me. I said thank you because I was thinking I better be nice if he is going to be cutting on me. I felt sick all the way home and then thought ..........NO WAY. When the scheduler called, I told her that under no circumstances, would I ever let him cut me open. I explained it all to her and she just said it was understandable. I would NEVER recommend this Dr. Run the other way!!!! I wish I would have read the reviews here prior to the appointment, or when I was looking in the area. read more

Had a lipoma surgery done with Dr.Lam a couple of weeks ago.Everything went smoothly.Easy to deal with doctor and a very polite and helpful nurse Elena to deal with.Good doctor and nurse duo.Recommend this doctor.Skilful surgeon.My wound is healing well. Thanks. read more

Very poor bedside manners. I recently had surgery with Dr. Lam. At the initial consultation, he only wanted to repair one of two sites that needed surgery being that one site was not bothering me (That should have been a red flag). I told him that since I was going under general anesthesia, I wanted both sites operated on. He said I would be in the hospital for 5-7 days, and I prepared accordingly. When I arrived for surgery on Wednesday, I had been moved to outpatient surgery. Instead of keeping me in the hospital, he sent me home the same afternoon. By Friday, I had developed fever, chills, sweats, and my stomach was distended. I called his office at 8am Friday morning yet didn't receive a call back. By 11am, I called again and finally received a call back. He said I needed to breathe and if the pain continued, he would call in a prescription of antibiotics on Monday. By Friday night the pain was so severe, that I ended up in the Emergency Room. After xrays and a CT scan, the ER doctor said I had a bowel obstruction and placed a NG tube through my nose to pump my stomach out. I ended up being in the hospital for 4 days. Dr. Lam still insisted there was no blockage contrary to what the ER doctor and the other tending doctors from my primary care doctors office were saying. Two weeks later, I had to go back to him to get staples removed which at this point were extremely red and inflamed. He looked at them and said, "You should have had these taken out a week ago" and yet he was the one who set the staple removal date. Overall he is very condescending and has poor bedside manners. I would never go back to him or recommend him to anyone! read more

Lam Albert Y MD Facs - Doctors Near Me - Torrance, California

My son was referred to Dr. Lam for a pilonidal cyst. My son was in a lot of pain and had difficulty even sitting. We both found Dr. Lam to be short and rude. We called the office and asked about getting a different surgeon but we were told we would have to start all over with another surgeon and we couldn't see the new surgeon for over 1 month. We ended up staying with Dr. Lam due to the pain my son was in. After the surgery Dr. Lam prescribed the lowest dosage of pain medication. Apparently he prescribes the same medication to all patients regardless of their medical history. My son was in a lot of pain and he called Dr. Lam who was once again very condescending and unhelpful. It has been almost 2 months and the cyst has reopened. We called the doctors office about this. Since we had a bad experience with Dr. Lam we asked to see another surgeon. We were told by the receptionist that my son would have to start all over again with another surgeon and he couldn't get an appointment for 1 month. I asked to speak to someone in charge and was told there isn't anyone. Overall our experience with Dr. Lam was horrible. He is rude and has no empathy. I would encourage any patient to avoid this office. They couldn't tell me how my son ended up with Dr. Lam and were unhelpful when they found out the cyst had opened. Do yourself a favor and dont see Dr. Lam. read more

Dr. Lam is a great doctor and surgeon! If you want your Dr. to show up at your appointment time (and give you a no-nonsense opinion, this is your guy! He's also has years of experience and demonstrated success. read more

Dr Lam performed a small biopsy surgery for our 20 year old daughter. She (and we) was very nervous before the initial consultation, but he was very professional and sensitive to her situation (taking me aside to explain to me what he believed we were looking at just in case she wasn't ready to hear it). The surgery went very well, the incision very clean and closed perfectly. it's healing up nicely and the scar will be minimal thanks to his skill and precision. This is especially important when the patient is 20 years old and the incision is very visible on the side of her neck. I would have no hesitation about going back to him again. read more

True, poor bedside manners. Went in for a consultation and wasn't very polite or compassionate. He just barged in with his M.A. and didn't even get to know me before he did his examination. He's way too blunt in telling what could happen after surgery that it terrified and mortified me. I also had a strong impression that he wasn't even listening to me, only let me say a few words and ask a few questions as if he was in such a hurry. Sorry, but this is a vital organ that he's contemplating on operating on and I definitely do not want this doctor to cut me open-EVER. read more

I had a consultation to meet with dr. Lam last Friday my opinion he seems very knowledgeable and confident in his abilities. Putting those two good qualities aside he was a tornado coming through the room I can tell that he just wanted to move on to the next room really fast didn't really care to answer any of my questions and referred me to the billing lady outside the office for further questions even though my questions have to do with the surgery itself I asked him if I was going to need plastic surgery afterwards and then he told me nope can't possibly work look any worse then it already does which made me feel very ugly. He was rude inconsiderate and pompous I do not recommend this man to perform on anybody read more

I had emergency surgery at a local hospital. I was told by the ER doc that there was a doc who had an opening for me ( which is rare on a Monday). The staff reassured me he was top notch so I agreed. Dr. Lam came to see me in the ER and our family found him to be a very kind person. He immediately radiated confidence in his capabilities to start. After the surgery, he came to visit me in recovery and I thought he was articulate and sweet. And when the staff wheelchaired me out of the hospital, he commented that my doc was "excellent". I visited him post-op and again, liked him very much. He has a kind disposition. If I ever have to have something cut out of me again, I hope he is available. (lol)He also has these perfect, small surgeon hands! haha. And get this...I waited 30 seconds to see him in his office!! World record in my life time. I liked the guy. And my surgery was a success. That matters to me then holding my hand bed side. read more