ObesityHelp

I am an ex-surgical ICU nurse in the USA (nursing supervisor now)
 and I tell you,

surgeons are normally not a desirable group

on average, they are more of a ego filled people you do not want to be around.  On top of that

they, like our PCPs, are limited by the

corporation that owns them or their group, on the amount of time
they spend with you or the amount of care your insurance will pay them on you.
.

This is not so with Mexican docs and for sure not so with Dr Alvarez!

Their time is their own.  They can spend

as much time as they want with you, it gives you the feeling
of how it use to be, docs holding your hand and talking with
you for as long as you need, to you not a disease or a surgery, but
you as a person.  WONDERFUL!!!

And Dr. Alvarez was at the top of the line in attentive, compassionate, and professional care!
I bragged about his excellent bedside manner and caring service he gave me and my friend for months after

I got home!!  He is hard to beat!
.

Other than the flight (I paid $145 plus tax Southwest Airlines), 
every thing was covered including the hotel before and after.
First thing we arrived into San Antonio and

checked into our hotel room provided, did I say room?

It was a Suite, a small nice apartment all to myself!

Wonderful, immediately things were beyond

my expectations, very good business practice.

.
That eve we meet our coordinator Penny, who

was by our sides thru it all, she even sat outside our
rooms at the hospital making sure all of our needs were 
meet, all the way to taking

us to the airport Monday!  She also shipped our

luggage UPS for us so that we didn’t have to carry it

home on the plane!!!! What a wonder that turned out

to be! 
.

The next morning, was surgery day, Penny drove us in a van across the

border about less than a mile to the hospital and

Dr Alvarez’s office.  
Yes, his hospital is just within one mile of the US border, that
gave me great comfort!!!!  I can't tell you how much it calmed me!!

And have I mentioned yet that there is TWO Bariatric surgeons doing
your surgery, not one and an assistant, but TWO, Dr Alvarez and Dr Rodriguez,
both very very good surgeons.  

Dr Alvarez himself was trained in France
to do the sleeve and assisted in 50 sleeves before returning home!!!!
Dr Alvarez has alot of passion as a surgeon, a trued craftsmen, you know how some surgeons can be rough with your insides and others are gentle!  Gentle means less pain and trauma, that's Dr Alvarez, a gentle craftsmen, his father is a surgeon too and
he and Dr Alvarez even do surgeries together!!  He is very passionate
about being a bariatric surgeon, quite a pleasant warm person to talk 
to, that is the kind of soul I want working on me!
I did not require narcotics postop, none of the 3 of us did!!!  I had only
a cramping feeling for about 2 days than that was all of the pain meds I took,
I was ready to return to work in 5 days.  I read of others that need narcotics
and weeks of recovery, not so with Dr Alvarez his surgery is a craft and he is very good at it. 

Anyway, We each talked with him personally,

what a charmer!!!!  He was so attentive and cared about

our needs, and I had some special ones with my bad back

and disinfectant allergies!!  He loved the logistics of the whole

thing, I really enjoyed his personality thru the whole couple of days.
.

As we all finished our private Q&A with him, Penny and Dr Alvarez

handed us each our own private cell phone with free long

distance!!! WOW!!  We could call home when ever we wanted

and as often as we wanted!!  cool. (next month they are installing wireless
internet in the hospital!!!)
.

Next, order was set on who is first, welllll, young go first and

me the oldest went last, but since I had done so much prep

work (liquid diet, balloons, by the way he that the balloons were a GREAT idea! ) 

they said I was great and took only 44 minutes!!
My stomach

skin was loose from 30 days of liquid nutrient preop dieting and that made my intestines flat and empty, lungs in good shape from the exercising, YeeHaw!!.
He did not require the preop diet, but being a nurse, I knew it was best.

And get this!  
My biggest worry was leakage, Dr Alvarez and

Dr Jose Rodriguez have a 0% leakage, I will repeat, 
these guys

are such 'surgical craftsmen' at what they do that they have 0% leakage,
YES!  0% leakage!!!!
I haven't talked to not one USA doc that can say that!!!

This is why he says he does so well, 
they put 3 rows of staples and double hand stitch

the seam, staples are very expensive, infact half the cost of the entire 
surgery! But, they care enough to make sure your surgery is done the
best it can be.   No one I checked with in the states did that!

It pays to have doctors that have done many many of these sleeves

I can’t over state that!

Came out of surgery and slept……haha
.

I stopped my pain meds after the 2^nd postop day, never even needed narcotics.

I did Gas X thin strips every 8 hours from the point we could have

ice chips on.

We got out of the hospital after two days,

I have 4 holes straight across about 2 inches above my belly button

and one in the middle under my breast bone (for the camera).
I had no belly drain I might add, he said he stopped doing that as

it was proven to be unneeded..
This is my 4^th day after surgery, I feel pretty good, not very tired I feel like I could use a couple cups of coffee and that’s it.
. 
I highly recommend Dr Alvarez and Dr Rodriguez, besides excellent prices, I feel like I was under excellent very detailed and caring care!

Dr A visited us at least 4 times a day, so very friendly.

The coordinator service I used was ISA, 
but it may be easier to
just go straight to Dr A's Website!!!!!!! 

You can go straight to Dr Alvarez's website at http://www.mache.com.mx/doc/index.htm

This was a Great experience!

And now I have my Banana!!!!

Marcella