Center for Obesity Surgery Bariatric Center

Very impressed. Still impressed. Great. A long way to go for doctor appointments, (from Jacksonville to Gainesville, Florida but worth the trip). He's caring and concerned for the patient. Aftercare is very important. Yes. Yes again. Excellant. Great bedside manner, very personable.Surgical competence AND bedside manner is top's...

Nothing negitive to say at all...

Dr. Rutledge is an excellent surgeon with a very personable bedside mannor. I found his office staff to be very friendly and helpful and I like the fact that most of them are former patients! If anyone out there is considering gastric bypass do yourself a favor and go online to his website www.clos.net and read and research, then go to one of his clinics to have even more questions answered. Dr. R have very strict pre and post op care instructions and they are so important to your success that when you have the MGB you will sign forms stating you will follow the MGB rules - this is for your own health and safety. Gastric Bypass is not an easy fix for weight loss and as you will see from his extensive online manual and pre-surgical research requirements he wants you to be a well informed patient and know all the risks along with all the benefits of the Mini Gastric Bypass surgery he performs.
I would rate Dr. R at the top of the charts for skill and personality. Just spend a few minutes with him and you will understand why I would sing his praises.

My first impression of Dr. Rutledge is still the impression I have now. He cares very much for obese people and wants to help. I have never had a problem with his office staff. They were very professional (although his staff is different now, since I had my surgery in Durham and now he's in Statesville). On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd rate Dr. R a 9. Only reason that I wouldn't rate him a 10 is because none of us are perfect. I thought his surgical compentence as well as his bedside manner were both great. I am SO happy I had this surgery with this particular surgeon. I think Dr. R is the best. Very caring doctor, indeed!

Very skilled and caring. Felt confident in his skills and knowledge. Dr. Rutledge has done over 1500 surgeries with only 1 death which is a reassuring statistic.

Dr.Ruttledge treated me as if I were his only patient.My impression of him has only improved with time.He always remembers everything about me and my medical problems prior to the MGB.His staff are previous patients..so are very caring and are willing to share their experiences.He tells jokes and keeps you at ease..I like him and I love his caring way with all obese patients.He requires you to talk with his previous patients and to complete a manuel...which is a wonderful learning tool.I am a RN and I sure learned alot.He requires you to have a primary care doctor that is willing to follow you medically.We also do a every three month follow-up form on line...and can go to his clinic every Thursday as needed or wanted.I would rate him very highly..he was a trauma surgeon in Chapel Hill,NC for 20 years.I think his sugical competence is better than or as good as his bedside manner.

My first impression of Dr. R was that he was honest. He informed the class on the dangers of the surgery as well as of the benefits. Since my surgery I am still thankful to have known both sides of the surgery. My benefits and results out weighed the dangers.The office staff was polite and helpful. They were just as excited as I was. I did not find anything that I did not like about Dr. R or his staff. I would like for his future patients tho know that he will tell you the truth about the surgery and what to expect after. He emphasizes aftercare alot. My personal Dr. keeps check on my blood work to make sure everything is ok. So far, I have had no problems. I make sure I eat lots of vegetables. I crave salty things instead of sweet things. Dr. Rutledge went over the risks of the surgery with a fine toothed comb. He discussed them with both my husband and myself. He made sure I knew what could happen. I would rate him a 10 in every thing. Surgical competence is very important to me. I was thankful that Dr. Rutledge has both surgical competence and bedside manners. The biggest plus is that I felt he was a religious man. I knew God was on his side and mine.

Very knowledgeable and caring.

I am not easily impressed by doctors having worked for them for years. When I went to the informational clinic given by Dr. Rutledge I was absolutely mesmerized. He spoke for about 4 hours and I never once looked at my watch. He made everything very easy to understand without talking "down" to us. He gave very direct and honest answers and did not try to minimize the risks involved with this surgery.

Dr. Rutledge has an office staff that are almost all his post ops so they know what you are going through. They are very warm and compassionate.

Dr. Rutledge is very busy and will not waste his time on people who are not willing to make the necessary changes after surgery. He requires that his patients do a lot of research and be fully informed about this surgery. You have to put together a "packet" of information and letters along with test results. You have to contact at least 10 of his post ops to ask them a list of questions. If you try to cut corners he will not approve you for surgery. At first I found it irritating that he required so much for approval but later on came to realize that everything he required made me a better patient with a greater chance for success. I learned so much from Dr. Rutledge.

He performed another kind of WLS for 15 years before creating the minimally invasive gastric by-pass (MGB) 4 years ago. He has done more weight loss surgeries than any other surgeon in the world. I admire and trust him totally. He cares about improving your quality of life.

Dr. Rutledge requires that you have a primary care physician for aftercare. This physician must send Dr. Rutledge a letter staing that they will take care of you post op before he will approve you for surgery. You must also send him monthly reports through email and he suggests a one year follow up in Statesville, NC.

Dr. Rutledge is a true professional who is
compassion and concerned about the
care of his patients. He is a skilled and
gifted surgeon who makes himself
available to all of his patients...night and
day.
His office staff is fluent in the surgery
process and keeps up with calls and
e-mails...they are great.
My impression of Dr. R. has never
waivered.
Dr. Rutledge is concerned about after
care and will do whatever it takes to
meet with you (no matter where you
live) by way of mini-conferences.

Dr. R. gives a complete list of after care
and vitamins etc. He expects all of his
patients to follow his advise and I have
every confidence that I will be safe and
healthy if I do.
He addresses the risks of the surgery
thoroughly.
I would rate him a 10.Surgical competence is
extremely important but being there is too.

My first impression of him was a good one. I only met him once and see him again the morning of surgery.

His office staff were thorough and helpful.

So far there is nothing I don't like about the doctor except that he is 2 1/2 hours away.

He emphasized aftercare a lot, said he wouldn't even do the surgery if I was not committed to aftercare, like keeping appointments, monthly B12 shots, daily vitamins and eating lots of protein, and doing exercise.

He has no aftercare program and if he did it would be to far to travel.

I had to take a open book test on the risks of surgery. They wanted to be sure I knew what I was getting into and I learned alot.

I would recomend him and would rate him so far as very good.

I think surgical competence is most important but if he had a good bedside manor who could ask for more.