"FIRST IMPRESSION: Was at the required seminar. He was articulate, knowledgable, and very receptive to questions. My Impression has not changed over time.rnrnTHE OFFICE STAFF are very savy about how to get this through the insurance company, and they all seem to want to be cheerleaders for me, which was something I did not expect. rnrnWHAT I LIKE LEAST ABOUT HIM: Nothing really to complain about except maybe I have no recollection of even seeing him on the day of surgery, although my husband says he came and spoke to him when the surgery was over. ADDED AT 6 MONTHS POST-OP: I still really like my surgeon and feel he was the best choice I could have made for surgical technique (which translates nicely into \"0\" complications for me post-operatively); however, I do notice after having seen him twice in the office for post-op follow-ups that he doesn't seem to even review my labs. In fact, if I don't point out that my iron levels are high (for example) he doesn't even mention them. I don't like that. I am perfectly capable of reviewing my labs and knowing what I need to do about them - but I doubt everyone else has quite the medical background that I do. It's almost like once you're off the operating table and through the initial post-op phase, he kind of checks out. Maybe it's just my experience. I'd choose him again, but I wish he was more engaged with my progress post-operatively. rnrnAFTERCARE EMPHASIS: He places great emphasis on it, and the program hosts a support group that meets monthly. rnrnWHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: As of July-09, he's done over 150 of the gastric bypass surgeries laprascopically, and he specialized in laparascopic surgery at Duke University Medical Center. He's VERY good at what he does. rnrnSURGICAL RISK REDUCTION STRATEGIES: Personally, I was a pretty high risk for post op blood clots, and so he had an inferior vena cava filter inserted in me the day before surgery. Additionally, I think he always uses Lovenox before and after surgery to lower the risk of clots in everyone. I got the preop antibiotic, and had an oxygen saturation monitor at my bedside with the alarm set at 90% the entire time I was in the hospital. rnrnOVERALL RATING: Excellent. He's both surgical adept and has an excellent bedside manner. I actually wanted the sleeve instead of the RNY, and he tried to get that for me with the insurance, but they were having none of it. So, I really appreciate that he tried for me. rnrnAnother thing he went out of his way to do for me was that I needed to have my surgery done and be out of the hospital before July 1st, when my new insurance year started. My premiums were all going up and I would have to meet all my deductibles and copays all over again. So, when the insurance gave their approval, the office staff scheduled the surgery for June 29th, which was cutting it way too close for me. We had discussed this in my preop visit, and he had told me if it got too close to July 1st, he could be a little flexible and make it happen earlier. So I asked the office staff to ask him if the surgery could be done any sooner. They tried to blow me off with \"he can't do it any sooner\", but I persisted, and said \"Maybe so, but would you just ask?\". Well, they did ask, and he moved my date to June 25th. I was really blown away by that, and appreciate it more than he can know. He's a two thumbs-upper in my estimation. And I don't give great ratings easily. "
"Beautiful place with generous sized rooms and they have a visitors chair in every room that converts into a perfectly flat bed for them if they choose to stay the night. Excellent. "
"I began researching proteins for the RNY patient long before I had my surgery. I learned the best kind of protein for us is Whey Protein and that there are basically 3 forms of Whey Protein: Isolate, Concentrate, and Blended (a combination of the first 2). So, once I knew this, I went in search of a reasonably priced option ? because protein supplements can get expensive really fast. I was examining the products sold at Vitalady.com because these are people who have had bariatric surgeries and who would take the time to answer my many questions. I landed on the Champion Pure Whey Stack as something to try out and Vitalady.com actually sells the different flavors in individual serving sizes! Soooo, I purchased a sackful and set out to try them on for flavor. I learned there are 5 flavors I particularly like: Chocolate, Vanilla, Banana Scream, Cookies and Cream, and Chocolate/Peanut Butter. I also learned: they shake up into a thick creamy mixture without grit at my desk in about 4 ounces of really cold water ? which I figure will be just about right when I am post-op. I add one pack of Nutra Sweet at this point (I am still pre-op right now) because I like things really sweet. YUM!! Then, when I placed my first order, because it was more than $300 (I ordered 25 pounds of protein powder ? enough to last 4 months, as well as the vitamins I knew I would need) I got free shipping! I don?t think we can get a much better price than $1.61/day for more than 60 grams of bioavailabile protein. I?m hooked! "
