"I had been a patient of St. Mary's before and anticipated a good stay as my last stay had been wonderful. The staff at that time was awesome. Pre- and Post-op care for the first 24 hours was very good. My one issue with the 24 hour care was that they were not very HIPAA compliant. Anyone could look at the computer screens as they walked by and could view what was posted there. Plus for a 24 hour care unit they were awful loud at times when patients were trying to sleep. I was disappointed when I got to the general floor. Some of the nurses treated me as a number. Several times I had to wait for my light to be answered for over 15 minutes. I did my own intake and output for the staff and had to remind them numerous times about my JP drain being full. My doctors were there every day and were wonderful, both Dr. Bettendorf and Dr. Pitt. Karla was a great nurse. She was there for me when I was needful and tried to do her best for me. The best nurse I had was the one who discharged me and I can't remember her name. She was very informative and helped me with everything. I think part of my particular problems were that they knew I'm a nurse and they expected me to do for myself more because I knew what needed to be done. But as a patient I was not suppose to be wearing my nurse's hat, even though I seemed to have to been donning it many times. Patient teaching was poor. Also I had a big issue with the dietary department. I am allergic to citric acid. Several times I received lemon or lime flavored items. I cannot have them. Also one nurse called it ascorbic acid instead of citric acid and really screwed dietary up there as well. On my first day on general floor when I was allowed to have liquids again, I received apple juice and cranberry juice for liquids. This was fine except for 1 thing. They were high in sugar and caused me to have dumping and a diabetic reaction of high blood glucose. If they had been true bariatric nurses they would have known not to give those to me. This had not bothered me before with my lap band, but with the RNY it was something they should have been looking out for. As the patient I was not always alert enough to realize those things. Granted, I was there during a winter storm warning and some staff had called in unnecessarily as we did not get the amount of snow it was calling for. The worst of the storm was the howling wind of 50 miles per hour exacerbated by the fact that we were right on the lake. Generally I had good points and bad points during my stay. I kept up with my walking. No one checked to see if I was walking or not. It was a good thing that I had brought a pair of loose shorts with me so that my butt was covered when I went walking. There should be robes made for IVs just like there are gowns made for Ivs. But that is a global issue, not just the hospital. I think there needs to be some mandatory inservices for the nurses who are taking care of bariatric patients so that those on the floor will know better what to look for when we get out on the general floor."
"Lisa was, is and remains a very helpful person in my diet before and after surgery. I have the complicated problem of being allergic to citric acid and Lisa did her best to help me find foods I could eat or drink that would help me immensely. We reviewed everything from diet, to supplements, to vitamins, to medications. She is very helpful and accomodating. I highly recommend her."
"I was Dr. Medlin's 5th lap band at St. Mary's in Duluth. He did a wonderful job on the surgery. I fell through the cracks though. Did not keep up with band fillings."
"After Dr. Medlin left, I fell even further into the cracks. I got to where I could not swallow. I made an appointment with the Bariatric Surgery dept at Essentia Health and met Dr. Bettendorf. He looked awful young to me but he seemd wise. We discovered through endoscopy the I have a cyst the size of my pinky between my arota and spine that pushes up against my esophogus making it difficult to swallow and that the pressure of the band exacerbated it. So Dr B. sat down with me and discussed our options. I told him I would like the band removed and to have the RNY done. He was agreeable and informative. He went to bat with the insurance company who agreed only to remove the lap band. But then I would still have the same morbid obesity and co-morbidities. So Dr. B wrote a letter to them informing of the findings and co-morbidites. and made it a smooth transition. He is very strong in being sure that aftercare is very important and my post op appointemnts were made even before my surgery once they had the date. During the surgery he and Dr. Pitt who was with him during the revision were informative and on the ball regarding the surgery itself and keeping up with me in the hospital. The only thing I can complain about was when he pulled the JP, there were no steri-strips applied, just a gauze and tape. This oozed and is still oozing some. I have kept it clean and dry at home. I was able to do this without problems due to the fact that I am a nurse. But other than that I think that Dr. B is a pretty good doc and I would recommmend him."
