Dr. Lauren McTaggart, MD is a board-certified general surgeon. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. She returned to pursue a career in medicine obtaining her medical degree from the American University of the Caribbean. She completed her internship and residency in General Surgery at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. She accomplished a fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery, Advanced GI and Bariatric Surgery at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida.

Dr. McTaggart’s surgical interests include: Minimally Invasive Surgery of the Foregut, Bariatric, and General Surgery. She has experience in bariatric and revisional bariatric surgery, foregut surgery, including esophageal motility disorders, gastroesophageal reflux disease, hiatal and paraesophageal hernias, and gastroparesis. She also has an interest in endoscopy, benign gallbladder disease and abdominal and inguinal hernias. She utilizes minimally invasive surgical techniques through a robotic and laparoscopic approach.

Dr. Lauren McTaggart is a member of the American College of Surgeons, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, Association of Women Surgeons, and the American Hernia Society.

Lastly, Dr. McTaggart is passionate about patient care and her community. She is dedicated to helping her patient’s understand disease processes and achieve a better quality of life.

Dr. Sarah Samreen is the Surgery Clerkship Co-Director and the Director of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery in the Department of Surgery at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas.

Dr. Samreen earned her Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from the Aga Khan University Medical College in Karachi, Pakistan. She completed her internship in General Surgery at Berkshire Medical Center in Berkshire, Massachusetts and completed her residency in General Surgery at the Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pennsylvania where she was an Administrative Chief Resident. She accomplished her fellowship in Advanced GI, Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska.

Dr. Samreen is a member of the Association of Women Surgeons, American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, and the American College of Surgeons.

Dr. Samreen's clinical interests include complex esophageal motility disorders including achalasia, GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), paraesophageal and hiatal hernias, bariatric surgery, gall bladder disease, inguinal hernias, and ventral hernias. She uses a minimally invasive approach through laparoscopy and robotic surgery.