Looking for a surgeon

Hello. I am in my early 20s and I am considering WLS. I believe that I am too big for laproscopic procedures (turned away by Dr. Leung within two minutes of meeting him). I have been reading a lot about the duodenal switch procedure and it really does look like the best type of WLS especially for someone as big as I am. I am having trouble, however, finding surgeons to have my GP refer me to. My GP gave me the contact information for a program out in Toronto and upon further review, they seem to only do laproscopic procedures as well. I'm kind of confused at this point. Help!

Curtis May I ask you how much do you weigh?? I had my RNY done in Monterrey mexico by Dr. Rumbaut and he does surgery on people up to 500lbs Vicki E

I am about 450lbs.. however going to Mexico doesn't sound like a great idea to me. :-(

the Dr. that did my surgery in Monterrey Mexico is one of the top RNY doctors in the world. He has taught many dr. on the procedure. The hospital is state of the art, dr.s and staff are fantastic and we could only hope to have the care in BC that I got there. His Name is DR. Rumbaut and you can find his website bt going to weight loss surgery in monterrey mexico Vicki E

There is a DS surgeon in Saskatchewan Here's his info Brian Colquhoun, M.D. 31 MacDermid Crescent Saskatoon, SK Phone: (306) 242-4268 I found that info thru the Saskatchewan forum. but I am not positive that he is still practicing. There are other DS surgeons, but maybe only a few others in all of Canada. You might have better luck going to the States. Good luck with your journey. Patience, perseverence and a sense of humour may all be useful in the days ahead. Janice

My brother has his RNY done lap and his weight was about the same as yours. Leanne LAP RNY - Dec 16/05 Dr Joya - PV Mexico 274/256/140??

Hi Curtis, It's fustrating when one finally decides to have surgery to rid ourselves of ourselves and then we hit wall after wall. I was having trouble finding a surgeon in BC too. One place said try this other place and so on and so on. I finally got the General Surgery department at VGH to recommend a bariatric surgeon and they recommended Dr. Meneghetti to me. He apparently just finished his training out of San Francisco and presently does the gastric bypass and will be doing the lap band procedure in about 6 months time. I'm waiting for my doctor to contact them with my referal so I haven't met with him yet but he's local and was recommended by a reputable hospital. My GP was excited when he found out there was another surgeon that's local for his patients. He had been sending them to a doctor in Victoria. It certainly couldn't hurt for you to call them. His # is (604) 875-4498. Good Luck! Leanne p.s. If my information is correct, gastric bypass is the only procedure acceptable by MSP at the moment. Costs for any other procedure would have to come out of your pocket.

Hi Curtis, I, like Leanne, believe that RNY is the only procedure covered by MSP. Given the wait times for WLS in Canada, you might be better off looking to the states. MSP has a list of providers that they will work with, but I am not sure how you get that information. I have read on the main board that DS has a much higher complication rate, hopefully you are finding good resources to do some research on this. Good luck with your quest. Lori