Aziz Richi Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

Dr. Richi comes highly recommended by me! He is the epitome of a surgeon--knowledgeable, kind, accessible, available, thorough... My 1st impression of him was that he is someone with whom I trust my life. He talked with me with sincerity, giving me his suggestions, and listening to my reasons and plans. He never once forced his opinion on me, and, in the end, has helped me succeed. Dr. Richi is straight-forward, and experienced. He made me feel completely comfortable being in his care.

I rate his office staff as highly as I rate him--superb! His nurse, Angela, is always available and returns calls immediately. She is straight-forward, like Dr. Richi, and is extremely helpful with getting patients prepped for surgery, as well as following up with aftercare. Dr. Richi's nutritionist, CAROLYN, is amazing! I cannot say enough about her! My insurance required me to follow a 6-month pre-op diet plan,and, from the minute I met with CAROLYN, I knew that I would have complete success from all of her support. Carolyn is available 24/7-literally! She accepts calls (or will call back immediately), texts, and e-mails at all times of the day and week; NOT just during normal business hours. Her monthly support groups are just that--supportive! She is a wealth of information, teaching us the essentials of successful weight loss, as well as simply how to be healthy and normal. I think CAROLYN is the back-bone of Dr. Richi's office, offering her utmost knowledge and support. I hope ALL of Dr. Richi's patients are referred to CAROLYN and no other, as they will receive the utmost benefits of support and care leading to their success in weight loss!

I cannot say enough about Dr. RIchi (and his staff, Angela, and Carolyn!!!!!). If ever asked for a bariatric surgeon recommendation, I would IMMEDIATELY recommend a call into Angela to, WITHOUT A DOUBT, set up a consult with Dr. Richi, and, WITHOUT A DOUBT, nutrition support with Carolyn!

Dr. Richi is a very matter of fact, right to the point kind of guy....he doesn't mince words. He's a really no-nonsense type dude. He is an excellent doc! I am happy that he was at the helm of my surgery because as soon as a complication arose, he did what he knew to do, instruct my family to PRAY! He also used wisdom and didn't try to rush and finish the job but put my safety first and I appreciate that. He is a stickler about following the rules and often says if I want to be successful just listen to him and his team. I am determined to be successful, therefore, I will listen to him and his team. He has a great aftercare program and the staff is all on board with it. They have all been really great.
I didn't really care about his bedside manner cuz all I wanted to hear from him was that I can go home and as soon as he said that, those dang stockings came off!
Excellent surgeon and I would recommend him to any and everyone considering this surgery in the area.

When I first met Dr. Richi, my first impression was that he was very short. LOL. I liked him right away because I too am short. Seriously though, from the beginning, I could clearly see that Dr. Richi was a no-nonsense Doctor. He gives his all and he expects no less from his patients. He is a very busy doctor so I knew that I couldn't sit there for hours asking him questions but the time that he was able to sit down and talk, he was quite informative. rnDr. Richi has a great staff all of whom are available when needed.rnI don't have anything about Dr. Richi that I don't really like. He's a nice guy but even if he wasn't, I understand that he isn't there to be my friend, he's there to be my surgeon.rnI think that future patients should know that Dr. Richi has high expectations of his patients and again, he expects hard work and nothing less than your best.rnDr. Richi strongly emphasizes aftercare program. He has a year long one that every WLS patient MUST attended.rnDr. Richi addressed the risks of surgery by giving me a packet of information that listed all of the risk and complications that might occur. After each section, there was a space where I had to write in my own words, my understanding of the text that I read. I then had to initial it. I then had to bring that form back to Dr. Richi during my last pre-op appointment with him and I had to read my answers to him.rnFrom a scale from 1 to 10, I give Dr. Richi a 9.5. Only because no one is perfect ;-)rnI think that surgical competence and bedside manner are both great, however, I would rather had a doctor who was highly competent with a not so great bedside manner as opposed to having an incompetent surgeon with a sunny disposition!!

I started off with St. Francis. When I found out we had a Doc so close to home that was Top notch, I switched. Dr. Richi is very serious about the patient understanding their own role in this very serious surgery. Its not a cure! Its a tool. You still have to be diligent about maintaining your therapy groups and regularly follow up with your team of professionals that have been supportive through out the process. I was very excited that Dr. Richi took me on so late in my process. I would recommend him to anyone thinking about a Gastric Bypass or Band. His office staff is just as nice, Gloria his nurse is the one you will talk to alot. She is very supportive and there for you when you have questions or concerns. She also takes care of communicating with the insurance company once all of your requirements are met. They were a god send. Dr. Richi is a talented surgeon. How lucky was I, my Doc was voted Top in the state!!!rnrnMy only neg experience about the bypass.....the jp drain and the removal of it 7 days later....ouch

My first impression was that he was very knowledgable about the procedure he performs and expects his patients looking into WLS to be just as knowledgeable about the procedure they are looking into. He is dedicated to the health and wellness of others and wants potentional patients to be just as serious about their before and after care as he is. Dr. Richies office staff is very attentive and polite. He can not stress enough about the seriousness of aftercare once you are postop. He is providing you with an essential tool to begin to care for yourself, but he is not curing you of obesity. He stress's the complications of non compliance after surgery and makes you fill out and sign a document that you understand what you need to do from postop day one for the rest of your life. If you do not get it and still push forward with the surgery, then shame on you. Your just setting your self up to fail. The office has a very structured after care program for their patients that requires you to sign up with the nutritionalist for monthly meetings for one year following surgery. There are no negotiations on that part of your care. Overall, I made a very educated choice to go with Dr. Richie. I am greatful he decided To take me on as a patient and will refer him to anyone that inquires about my WLS. His bedside manner and surgical competence are well above a 10 * rating.

Office staff is great, nutritionist is great, Dr Richi is right up front with everything--I like that. You MUST attend f/u nutrition and support group meetings--I think that's a plus. We'll see--surggery date 11/27/06.

Dr. Richi is very professional. He is straight forward and to the point. The office staff is very friendly. Gloria, Dr. Richi's right hand assistant is very nice and hard working. Both of them get right back to you if you call with a question or problem. Dr. Richi came highly recommended to me as a surgeon. Most of the people said they would trust him with their lives. He is the utmost professional and a perfectionist. Dr. Richi's nutritionists name is Carolyn. She is helpful. His phychotherapists name is Sherri. She is very nice and down to earth. He strongly suggests an aftercare plan with Carolyn and Sherri. I wish Dr. Richi had his own surgical center. The hospital experience was probably the worst part of the surgery. It would be nice to have nurses and staff who are caring and concerned with the post-op needs of bariatric patients, rather than feeling like an inconvenience. I believe that the best you can ask for is surgical competence along with great bedside manner, and Dr. Richi is not a man of many words, but, I definetely would chose competence over friendliness and that is why I chose Dr. Richi.