Dr. Livingston, M.D. Bariatrics Bariatric Center

My first impression of my surgeon was: I really liked him He is quite but very informative. He answered all my questions and concerns.
The office staff was very helpful and would go out of their way to help you
He was very concerned about the after care of surgery and has very good after care program with his associates.He was very up front on the risks of surgery. In all I would rate GREAT.I think that surgical competence and bedside manner are both important.

My first visit with Dr. Livingston is June
8, 2000 at 4:00. I have yet to speak with
the doc but his staff was a little cut-dry.
After talking to her for a minute she warmed up. Maybe it was really crazy when I happened
to call. She was really helpful when it came
to trying to move my first visit date up.
She told me to keep calling on Wednesdays and
Thursdays to see if someone may have cancelled. The doctor is only in on Thursdays. Well I finally met with Dr. Livingston. He was really nice. He's a bit quite but nice. I liked him.

He is very professional and knows alot about WLS surgery. He is an excellent surgeon who really cares about the welfare and success of his patients. The office staff is wonderful. He thinks that aftercare is very important and has an online support group and bi-monthly support meetings. His bedside manner is a little dry, but he is very competent and has done alot of procedures with sucessful and complication free outcomes. He does a good job of informing you of the risks and benefits of the surgery.

I was seen by Dr Liu who works with Dr Livingston. My first impression of him was wonderful. He was kind and really seemed to listen to my answers to his questions. The office was overflowing with people, but he did not rush or seem hurried. Everyone that I have had contact with at UCLA has been wonderful.

Actually the surgen in Dr. Lui, he works in the same office with Dr. Livingston. Dr. Lui and his team have been fantastic. I needed to get a date quick due to my job and they worked me in.

My impression of him
was better than I had expected because I had
heard that he could be a
little cold. (He is very
serious when it comes to
this Surgery.) Well I had reached the medical office with plenty of time to spare, only to have to wait an hour for
the Dr. Well I realize that he is very busy, lots of patients and all
but I think an hour is a
bit MUCH! Well when he
came in the room, he seemed rather relaxed to
just sit & talk with me
about the Surgery & wanted to make sure that
I understood risks, etc.
He knew I obviously did
my homework re: Research
etc. and I only asked a few questions, He was very informative and we
seemed to hit it off, very well I didn't feel
intimidated at all, (All
that worrying for nothing)!! He said my High Blood Pressure was up, and that I was too
young to be having the health problems that I Have he approved me for the Surgery right then and there. After he left
his Right hand assistant
Joyce came in and told me of all the details Re:
Hospital, Surgery Date Info, Hospital Support Groups, ETC...The Surgery
is done at the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles and I know I will be in the BEST of hands.

So far Dr. livingston and his staff have been very sweet and efficient.

Dr. Livingston seemed to be intelligent and competent and I have received the expected results from my RNY surgery. However, the administrative and follow up processes at UCLA left me feeling like a number instead of a person. My surgery was performed at UCLA Santa Monica and unfortunately at the time (Nov 99) there was a serious lack of knowledge and experience with the health care staff there. I found myself spending alot of time explaining the nature of my surgery to people who were supposed to be taking care of me - not terribly reassuring. Also, the on-line "support group" has been a terrible disappointment. If you dare to criticize UCLA or any of their business practices you will be "disbarred" from participating in the group. This is what happened to me, and despite numerous communications with Dr. Livingston and his staff I was never told exactly WHY I was not allowed to participate in the support group any longer. This was a demeaning experience and seriously hindered my ability to benefit from a peer support group. I have subsquently found medical care and support elsewhere - but I would caution anyone considering UCLA for their surgery - be prepared to accept their bureaucracy and lack of personal care.

I met Dr. Livingston on my appointment date at the end of January. I should probebly talk a little abou the problem of just getting to his office. Dr. Livingston is at UCLA Medical Center. While to going was good, the getting there sucked. When I arrived I was a little confused. I had never been to UCLA before as my hospital is Kaiser. When I arrived, I asked the guard at the gate where the office was. He directed me to building 200. It took a while to get to the room he said, only to find that it was the wrong room altogether. So, I walked to the surgical suite, signed in and waited. Three or four minutes later, the woman a the front desk asked if I had checked in downstairs. There was no sign saying to do so, and I said no. She redirected me to room 100. When I got there, I wasn't even sure I was in the right place (it said diagnostic imaging on the door) but I did go in and it turned out to be the right place.

So the moral of the story is arrive early to your appointment. If I hadn't planned to get there 45 minutes early (can you tell I was excited) I would have missed it.

As for Dr Livingston, he was not very reassuring, but he seemed very competent. When I asked about some of the other options, we dicsussed the matter. He didn't seem to be rushing me, but I felt that if I didn't ask him all my questions I'd lose this opportunity.

So as of now, I'm not quite sure what to think. I'll let you know.

My surgeon is Dr. Carson Lui, an absolute
doll. From the moment I met him all my fears
dissappeared. He is confidence personified,
without the attitude.
Kind, caring, thorough, compassionate, these
are just a few of the adjectives people use
to describe him.
His office staff, while extremely busy and
overwhelmed by construction at the hospital,
still manages to answer all questions, and
not make a person feel rushed.
Dr Livingston and his staff have an on-line
support group, and bi-monthly support group
meetings at UCLA.
Staff and Drs both emphasize this is only a
tool, it is up to me to make this work, but
they are all available (even by email!) for
any questions and/or help. Dr. Lui did not
minimize the risks of surgery, but I have
confidence all will be well.
The only negative was the amount of time I
had to wait after my insurance approval before
I was scheduled.