"Honestly, I didn't know where to begin when beginning to research doctors to do the VSG procedure for my husband and me. We knew were we were going to be self-pay -so we went to OH.com and started research. By happy accident, we found Dr. Alvarez! One thing that I immediately noticed was how many positive reviews he has had, and how many procedures he's done! I'll be honest; I thought this was too good to be true! I started searching for any complications or anything wrong- NOTHING! The next day, I called Susan (his patient coordinator). She was AWESOME! She walked me through the entire process- very easy! Once approved (less than 24 hours after starting the process), we scheduled a surgery date that was convenient for my husband and I. In the meantime, anytime we had any questions- we could either call or email and get an immediate response. She sent us very detailed instructions for pre-op and post-op as well as forms and information about the procedure. She followed up with a phone call to ensure that we understood everything. She totally put our minds at ease!! rnrnWe arrived in San Antonio the day before surgery and met Rosie. She drove us from San Antonio to the Holiday Inn Express in Eagle Pass. She checked us into our very nice hotel room, and then told us she would see us the next day to go to Piedras Negras. The next morning, Rosie was there exactly when she said she would be. She drove us across the border to Piedras Negras. While we were driving, she showed us some interesting sights along the way. Again, she was very very friendly and very professional. The drive from the hotel in Eagles Pass to the hospital was only about 5-10 minutes! We got to the hospital and finally got to meet Dr. Alvarez. I was TOTALLY impressed and put at ease the minute I met him. He radiated confidence!! Dr. Rosales came in a while later- again- wow. From that minute on- I had no worries or fears- I just knew everything was going to be okay!! The hospital room was very nice. We had ‘the suite’ as both of us were having surgery together. The hospital staff was very nice as well. Anytime we needed anything, they were there. I couldn’t believe how many times we saw the doctors! In fact, I lost count of how many times either Dr. Alvarez or Dr. Rosales checked on us!! It was over 10 times per day!! I hate to say this because I work in the medical field, but at US hospitals, we are lucky to get checked on once or twice a day!! It has now been a month (to the day) since the surgery, and neither of us have had any complications. We had very minimal bruising around the incision sites, and absolutely no gas pains. We have absolutely no regrets about our decision to have this surgery with Dr. Alvarez. rnrnLong story short- from beginning to end- everyone (Susan, Rosie, Dr. Alvarez, Dr. Rosales, Christina, all the nurses at the hospital, etc) was very professional and very friendly. Dr. Alvarez truly is a life-saver!!rn"
