AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center Bariatric Center

I watched Dr. Onopchenko's Webinar about surgical weight loss procedures and was very impressed with the amount of information that was presented. He put everything into laymens terms so that it is understandable. He is very knowledgeable and seems to be very good at what he does. He requires all his prospective patients to attend a seminar before you can make an appointment for your initial consultation. He is very concerned about informing his patients. I am impressed with Dr. Onopchenko and his program. My intial consultation is scheduled for 5/8/06. I look forward to meeting with him. I will update after my consult.rnrnrnrn8/11/06rnJust a quick update about Dr. O and his staff. When I met Dr. O I was very impressed with his demeanor and his concern for me. He was very open to questions and I did not feel rushed. I walked away feeling that I had made a good decision in chosing him to be my surgeon. Now a word about his staff. -- These people are wonderful. I have called the office several times with questions and was never made to feel that I was being a bother to whomever I spoke to. I have gone into the office to drop off paperwork and the ladies have gone out of their way to help me with what I needed to do in order to get all of my pre-op testing done. Kathy even called the sleep lab while I was in her office and gave me the phone so that I could set up an appt. This on a day when I was getting the runaround from my insurance company and was not having a good day. I would say that Dr. O is well represented by his staff, Kathy, Doreen, Laurie, Mary Beth are all a compliment to him. And that says a lot.

felt very secure with him,staff was great, all were knowlegable, professional, and friendly. Listen to what he says and all will go well. His aftercare will be important to me. He told of all risk, that's why I am not playing around at all. I liked everything about him and his office.rnPatti Underwood

For all of the people out there that have not met Dr. Patel, he is funny, compassionate, educated and wears funny socks.rnAfter initially dealing with the office staff, I was not satisfied, my calls were never returned. But recently it seems that they have had a high turn over, so maybe things will improve.rnDr. Patel really emphasizes after care, but you have to do your part and remember that he has given you a tool, it is not miracle surgery. You will have to excercise and eat right, and go for monthly follow up visits and get your adjustments.rnI know everyone will have a positive experience like I have along with my friends that have had the surgery.

My first impression was oh..ooh, a millieium yuppie... may be a little \"green\" (rookie). But after listening to his presentation and Q&A session and listening his post-op patients, I regain confidence in his skill set. He has a good team members in his group. There nothing I don't dislike about him (except he's dosen't golf (smile)). He's very serious about patient post-op program, that they (the patient) abide by that, in order to achieve successful weight loss. During his presentation and support group meeting, he points out all pros and cons of the WL procedure. rnrnI have great appreciation to Dr. Patel, for he has help me get on the road to better healthy living. I would (and have) referred friends to him.

I have been Dr. Patel's patient since 10/15/04. I LOVE LOVE LOVE him. On 1/6/05 I had the lap-band surgery. On that day I weighed 289lbs. Today 18 months later I now weigh 175. Dr. Patel is as aggresive as you want to be. I try to go to all his seminars and support groups to be supportive for him. He's just awesome. I've sent him at least 8 patients and everyone is also very happy!!! He helped change my life!! love ya Dr.P Holly

'At the seminars he was very open and went through as much as he could. Answered questions thorouhly. I thought he was business like but knew what he was doing. He did ask me if I had any questions

Dr.O is a great doctor I would recommend him to everyone. He is very frank tells you like it is no pulling punches. But he is a kind man and you can tell he is and will be there for you.

'I first met Dr. Onopchenko in 1991 when I was going thru' a rough time in my life! My obg found a lump in my breast. Dr. O (as he is known by all those who love and admire him)

Dr O was incredible. The first thing which struck me was his emphisis on surgery being a tool not an instant remedy to my weight problem. His office staff is great, from the first visit I had they made me feel comfortable and were very supportive. He addressed all of the benefits of surgery as well as all of the risks involved. Dr. O realizes that the journey to surgery as well as the surgery and afterwards is not just taken by his patient but also involves that person's family. In my case my husband and parents. He was willing to answer any question they had and promply adressed any concerns they had for my well being. Over all Dr O is outstanding. I am forever greatful that he gave me the one tool which finally worked. When i met him the first time I weighed 233 lbs. As of the last time i weighed myself (04/01/2006) I weighed 132 lbs. I went from a size 22/24 to a size 7/8. It has been a long road but he has been there the whole way. His aftercare program is great. The most annoying part for me was all the tests leading up to surgery. I realized they were for my own benefit so he knew of any hidden problems in advance but I was ( like everyone else) eager to get the process off the ground. The whole pretesting process is just a part of his surgical competence. I was confiedent going into surgery that he knew what he was doing and i was going to be ok, like a version 2.0 of myself. My faith in him as well as his bedside manner made my family more confident and relaxed during the surgery and when i first came home. I am now 9 months out (4/2/2006) and am just loving life. I can run and climb steps and don't need a nap all the time. I can exercise and go out with my husband in the same day without a nap in between. WOW. THANKS DR O, mostly for giving me a second shot at really living.

From the first time I attended Dr O's seminar, I knew he would be my first choice for a surgeon. Just by listening to him explain the surgery and answer questions, I knew he really cared about obese patients and seemed to understand what their daily "trials" were. He makes no exceptions when it comes to the rules of his program. I feel Dr. O is the BEST surgeon I could have picked to help me regain my life. I would recommend him to anyone who wants a Dr that truley cares about them and not just in for the money.