JourneyLite of West Florida Bariatric Center

I heard about Dr G. thru a friend who had the lap band did amazing. I had my stomach stapled 25 yrs ago, which was hell. So I really didnt want to go the surgery route again, but I went to the seminar to get more info..like could they even do lapband over staples? I left there knowing Dr G and the lapband were for me. Dr G and Dr DiCicco have been wonderful. I had surgery on 3/24 and they worked very hard not to have to cut me open which I am very grateful for. The after surgery follow up has been great and the staff is so friendly and helpful especially Barbara and Betty. I would strongly reccomend going to his seminar if you are thinking about the surgery and decide for yourself.

Dr. K is a very nice man. Surgery went great. I am five weeks post op and doing wonderful!! I am so glad I did this!!!

Dr. Grossbard is the GREATEST!!!!! He has also had the band put in and has lost over 100 lbs... He is very understanding and will sit and talk to you about any questions you have.

Dr. Grossbard came highly recommended by a friend who used to work with him in his regular surgery practice. I found him to be pretty sarcastic and egotistical, but that is not unusual for a surgeon. All of the staff members who I have met have been great. Dr. Grossbard has the band himself and has had it for quite some time, so he understands personally what his patients are experiencing. All of his patients seem to love him and have only the utmost respect for him as a surgeon.

My first impression of Grossbard was terrible. At the informational seminar, I thought that he was pompous, full of himself, and delighted in ridiculing all of the poor fat people at his informational seminar. He would pull people up front to demonstrate the difficulties in putting on shoes or sitting comfortably in airplanes. He would choose a person from the audience, stand her up and twirl her around, poking at her fat, talking about it. Many other people found him funny; I saw lots of people laughing. I thought it was offensive.

My impression of him has never changed but I decided to put his abrasive personality aside since my insurance was being very cooperative and it looked like they were going to approve him for surgery. My mother accompanied me to the hospital for my surgery and when Dr. Grossbard came out to speak to her and tell her my surgery was successful, she asked him about prescriptions for pain afterward, to which he replied, "Pain? What pain? Tell her to take Tylenol." Yeah...... sure. It wasn't the worst pain in my life but Tylenol wasn't cutting it. I wish he had prescribed something a little stronger. Everyone tolerates pain differently. It felt like I had been kicked in the stomach after doing 500 ab crunches. I was sore and the incision near the access port hurt like anything.

His office staff was very pleasant to talk to and they were a bright spot in the whole process.

I think future patients should know that:

1. He's a jerk as a person. Prepare yourself for humiliation, crass language, degradation, and to only see him once in your life: at the informational seminar. I never had an appointment with him personally, never saw him pre-op, and he never came to see me post-op. My first appointment 2 weeks post-op is with his nurse practitioner.

2. He's a good surgeon. I have no bruising around the incisions at all, and they are very small and neat. I have no complications besides wishing I had something stronger for pain.

3. Stay on top of his office staff. When they say that they will take care of something, call back to check up on them. If you stay on top of things, then there is less risk for delays or postponements. His office staff is very nice and pleasant.

As for aftercare, he is very structured and rigid. There is NOTHING but clear liquids for two weeks, period. I got a cute little goody basket from the hospital with instructions, drink mixes, hard candies, teas, and other things to help get me started on clear liquids. After that, it's full liquids and then solid, soft foods. You have to go back once a month for follow-up appointments for at least a year. It's very structured but at least it keeps you connected to the office so they can track your progress.

The risks of surgery were very clearly stated and I was quizzed on them several times to make sure that I understood. I think the pain was minimized though, it was a lot worse than I expected. The common perception is that it is possible to go back to work in 3-4 days. I was expected to go back to school a week post-op and I had difficulty sitting in a desk for any length of time as well as difficulty driving for any length of time. A week post-op it was still difficult to sleep any way other than flat on my back and lying on my left side was out of the question. (the port and incisions are on the left side of the abdomen).

In all, removing his abrasive personality from the situation, he was a good, thorough surgeon. I would give him a 7 out of 10.

At the moment, I'm still 1 week post-op, so look for this information to change, based on future occurrences.

I liked him very much.He knew alot about it because he had the surgery himself also.

Has not changed only better. He is very helpful.
Everyone at his office is just great and caring and answer what ever questions you have.
I dont have a least about him. like all

Dr. G. is very understanding and you can talk to him about your feelings.
He tells you like it is. And explains all you have to do to take care after surgery.
Yes, You have to follow his aftercare it is structured.
He tells it like it is what can happend and what the risks are for surgery and after.
I would rate him a number 9
I would say surgical is better. But Dr. G.
does have a good bedside manner also.

He's a little cocky but very sure of his ablilities. He had a good sense of humor too.

Great office staff.

He was a little cocky.

I tell everyone about him.

Great aftercare

I was fully informed of risks.

Great surgeon!

Dr. Krish is part of Florida Obesity Surgical. He works with Dr. Grossbard. He and his staff have been just wonderful. I went to his seminar that really was a discussion group at their office. It was myself and 5 other people with the Dr. and one of the assistants who has been banded for 5 years or so. There wasn't a question they didn't answer and welcomed all comments.
The consultation with Dr. Krish was easy. The only negative would be I had to make sure I asked the questions because he didn't offer a lot of info. Betty, Barbara, Michelle and the rest of the staff are absolutely the best! They never once forgot to call me back and the insurance processing was blessedly quick and easy.

He is wonderful. So far, my impression has not changed. Office staff is wonderful, very helpful. Dr. Grossbard has had the surgery himself. After having the surgery, he switched his practice to do performing lapbands. He empazises aftercare as a priority. He requires all patients to have a monthly follow up visits and to attend support meetings.

I decided to go with Dr. Jawad in Ocala.
He's an incredible surgeon. I had my surgery 2-3-2004. I'm extremely happy with my results. I wanted an oppotunity to make potential patients aware of the interaction I had with Dr. Grossbard's office.

What is stated is strictly my opinion based on the personal experienceand interaction I had with Dr. Grossbard and his staff.
It does not mean you will have the same experience I did. I hope you don't!

Afer my first meeting with Dr. Jawad, I decided to consult with another surgeon in my area. I decided to consult with
Dr. Lee Grossbard in Zephyrhills Florida. I really feel like that was a terrible mistake. My experience with his office was horrible! In my opinion Dr. Grossbard's bedside manner is the worst I have ever experienced. Before the lapband consultation I had done allot of research. Dr Grossbard required me to attend one of his lapband seminars. Upon my initial phone call I was informed Dr. Grossbard had the lapband himself. I was impressed with this fact and felt he could relate to me on a level that other surgeons without a weight problem could not. After meeting him my opinion quickly changed.
Upon my initial call to Dr. Grossbard's office I was told I could make an appointment on the same day as the lapband seminar due to the distance I would be driving to attend. I found out that all the intial information I had been given and had provided was not enough to make the appointment. I had been given incorrect information for over 2 weeks by a staff member named Betty. I feel I wasted 2 weeks based on Betty's lack of knowledge. This situation really angered me. I decided to call and talk to the office manager. The Office manager was not there so I spoke to the receptionest and communicated my displeasure with the misinformation I had been given.
At the time of my initial call to the office I had already been authorized by my insurance company for the procedure.
Due to Betty's misinformation, the day after the seminar I returned to Zephyrhills to meet with Dr. Grossbard.
Dr. Grossbard came into the examination room and immediately told me his staff did not like me and falsely accused me of tape recording telephone conversations I had had with his staff. I can't tell you how shocked I was! I feel Dr. Grossbard was very cruel, I literally cried for several days about the treatment I received from Dr. Grossbard. Again, let me reiterate in my opinion his bedside manner is horrific. Unlike Dr. Jawad's office, I did not feel anyone in his office was warm or patient friendly. I felt as though Dr.Grossbard's office thought they were doing me a favor by allowing me to be considered for surgery. In my opinion I found Dr. Grossbard to be cold, extremely cocky and very unsympathetic. While at the office, I also met Michelle (Dr. Grossbard's right hand), Michelle also has the lapband and used to work for the manufacture of the band. In my opinion I found Michelle to be be cold and very arrogant as well. In my opinion the most disturbing thing about all this, is having any kind of weight loss surgery is such an emotional decision the surgeon and his staff should be considerate of the patients feelings and needs. Especially since this surgical procedure requires a long term relationship with the surgeon and his staff. After my peronsal dissapointment with the one on one with
Dr. Grossbard I phoned his office and indicated I would not be having the surgical procedure. A week after my appointment
Dr. Grossbard's office mailed me a bill for $300.00 in spite of the fact I had insurance. I was really angered by all of this. I am still shocked that I was charged $300.00 for for what I saw as 10 minutes of insults, false accusations and emotional abuse.

I'm sure Dr. Grossbard is a competent surgeon. I was personally very dissapointed with his bedside manner and lack of humble attitude. I was also very dissapointed with the interaction I had with his staff.

This is my opinion only!