Kevin Mitchell, M.D. Bariatrics Bariatric Center

the weight for life people handled everything which made it so easy to deal with. first meeting with the dr. went well. he answered all questions i had. i was scared about surgery and thought i would die on the operating table, he assured me i wouldn't. he has always been very professional, kind and helpful, and encouraging. his office staff is great, they are there for you 24 hrs. a day. i would recomend this dr. to anyone considering surgery. the weight for life program has good aftercare with follow-ups with the dr. and support group meetings. the risks of surgery were explained fully before surgery. i feel by the time you get to see the dr. you have already thought about risks and are willing to deal with that. he puts your mind at ease about them or has told me right out what may happen on rare ocassions. none of which seemed all that life threatening compared to caring around over 400 lbs. everyday. my blood pressure has gone down, my bladder problem has almost completely stopped. it so wonderful to make it to the bathroom, my uterine pain has stopped. all this was because of the pressure of my stomach on my inside body parts. i am doing fine on the eating. yes, i still have cravings, but they are not as strong as they were before. i still melt when i drive by a dairy queen, but i just have a sugar free fudgesicle when i get home. i haven't eaten real sugar, so i haven't had the sugar dumping yet. the thought of what happens when you do has turned me completely off from trying to eat sugar. i don't snack between meals any more and it it getting easier to gauge how much of something i can eat. soup i can eat a little more than regular meat. i make sure i eat 2 protein meals because i have a hard time getting down those protein drinks. i only do about 1 week. a usual meal for me is half a chicken breast with a small piece of potato or 6 little pieces of green beans, breakfast is a small bowl of cereal with banana cut up or oatmeal, lunch is soup with some crackers or tuna salad on crackers or a half slice of bread. i don't get hunger or full feelings like i used to before. hunger feelings for me now is i start burping, like i've filled up with air. when i've eaten too much, it feels like i have something stuck in my throat and i need to get it out. vomiting isn't fun so i try and mak sure i don't overeat. i had a hard time right after surgery with vomiting after i got home and am still dealing with that a bit. after i've slept all night, my throat doesn't want anything down it, not even water. i am now able to eat breakfast but i have to eat very, very slowly so it stays down. i am now sometimes able to brush my teeth right away, before i couldn't at all and would start vomiting right away as soon as i put the tooth brush in my mouth, but that's getting better. i found out i can't eat real oranges yet, the pulp won't stay down, but i can drink orange juice. it is probably too early for me after surgery. i have to stick with the smooth fruits. i still get tired during the day, but try and stay up and not nap as i've got nearly 4 feet of incision to heal from. about 3 weeks after surgery the dr. told me i could take off the binder, don't do it. leave it on until you are completely closed. my stomach split open about 4 inches at the bottom of the bypass incision. thus, it had to heal from the inside out which takes many weeks longer. it's been 10 weeks from surgery and i still wear the binder when i am in the car traveling to keep from bouncing around or if i have been out and running around my stomach gets sore and i put it back on when i get home or even before i go out, then take it off when i get home. it has been a hard road to get to where i am now, i don't have any regrets and am glad i did it.

I left Dr. Mitchell's office feeling very confident in his ability to care for me. During the office visit Dr. Mitchell spoke with me as if he were speaking to someone with whom he had known for some time (I liked that!).

The only interaction I had with his office staff is to check in, weigh and of course get the co-pay.... not real impressed with the receptionist.







Overall from this visit I would give Dr. Mitchell a 10 ... let's see how things go over the weeks to come.

I really liked Dr. Mitchell from the beginning. The first time I met him was at one of his monthly seminars on WLS and I found him to be very knowledgeable, nice, and genuinely concerned about your well-being. He's a little quiet and doesn't bombard you with information, but rather lets you ask your questions and answers them like he just has all the time in the world. I'd totally recommend him to anybody looking for a surgeon in the St. Louis area. (Actually, I'm over 2 hours from that area myself, but I'm glad I drove the extra miles!)

Dr. Mitchell is a very wonderful person and surgeon. He is very concerned with making sure you are going into surgery with the best odds of recovery as well as working with your primary care physician to coordinate your care before and after surgery!

His assistant, Donna Rose, is a god-send. She has made all the difference in the world in his practice and how well things are handled.

Please be patient when you go to see Dr. M. He takes time with each patient to ensure that the patients questions are answered and they feel that their needs have been met. He may be behind schedule sometimes but at least he spends more than a quick five minutes only with you.

You'll be hard pressed to find a more competent and compassionate surgeon doing this life saving procedure.

Thank you, Dr. M, for saving my life!

I was very impressed with Dr. Mitchell. I
had a hard time after surgery which I felt
there should have been a better understanding
of that. He is best with surgical competence
but his bedside manner was not the best.
His office staff at the old office did not show
a compansion for the weight loss. The picture
taken prior to surgery was the only one taken.
I would ask his staff and they would state that
it would be taken next time.

I thought Dr. Mitchell was very nice when I met him. We had to rush through the consultation because there was a scheduling problem. He made me feel comfortable and answered all of my questions. He seems to be a very good surgeon and his staff is very nice. I have talked to several post-ops who have spoke highly of him. At the second meeting, which is the last before the surgery, he eased some of my fears. He made me feel confident the surgery was a good choice and he was ready to go. My only regret is the fact that my two meeting with him were fairly brief. I really didn't have a lot of questions for him because I have learned so much from this websight.

**Update** 9/23/00
Dr. Mitchell and his assistant Cathy are the BEST!!! He is a very smart man and knows his stuff. He will answer all of your questions and is very patient. The staff at Forest Park Hospital gives him much praise and respect. They treated me like a queen during my hospital stay. I didn't want to go home!

I met Dr. Mitchell last year at a seminar which was very informative and thorough. It gave me a clear understanding of exactly was was going to happen. I had a consult with him in March of this year. His staff Cathy, Bonnie and Velma are sweethearts and tries patiently to answer all questions in a timely manner.
I'm having very bad luck with approvals from my insurance carriers. I'm on Insurance #2 now. Velma, that works w/Bonnie is good with appeals and is going to review my appeal letter to make sure it sounds good. My friend had surgery in March/2000 and could not say enough good things about Dr. Mitchell. She loves that man. I can't wait until it's my turn.

When I first saw Dr. Mitchell I thought he was kind of
kind of shy and quiet. I came into the visit with
a list of about 30 questions. By the end of the visit
he had answered all of my questions and never once made
me feel rushed. He was also laughing by the end of the
visit, so I guess we broke the ice! Dr. Mitchell's staff
were all very helpful and willing to chat about their
experiences with WLS. His office was very crowded the
first time I went in. I waited quite some time. But then
after I saw how much time he spent with me making sure my
concerns were addressed, I never felt bad about having to
wait again. I knew he was the type of Dr. that cares about
his patients. Dr. Mitchell follows up monthly for the 1st six
months, more if it is needed. He worked very closely with my
primary care physician to be sure that all of my needs regarding
my prior health history were met. He fully explained the procedure
to me and what I could expect afterward. I did have some minor set-
backs due to blockages caused by scar tissue. I had an endoscopy with
dilation to fix the problem. Dr. Mitchell knew what needed to be done
as soon as I told him the symptoms. I would rate Dr. Mitchell
at 100% competent and compassionate!

First impression of him, "DANG! HE IS CUTE! EXAMINE ME ALL YA WANT!" lol, and no, that impression hasn't changed. He is a very nice man, he anwers all and any questions you may have, and doesnt seem to be rushed when he is with you. And as for his ablity as a surgeon, I think he is just great. I am doing awesome too, him and his staff took great care of me. His nurse Cathy is a sweetie, and also very helpful. I felt very at easy with them, and was very comfortable both before and after surgery, I knew I was in good hands. Honestly, the only negative thing I could possibably say is that I had to wait a while before I could see him, but heck, that is no different then my regular doctor's office!

I thought Dr. Mitchell was very porfessional and he seemed genuinely concerned. His staff was very friendly and professional. It was hard to find his office once I arrived at the hospital, so I would recommend arriving early. The staff I spoke with on the phone did not give any directions once inside the hospital, so be sure to ask for them. He gave me a lot of information, recommended a free seminar that he offers monthly, and let me ask all the questions I wanted without rushing me or giving incomplete answers the way some doctors do. I feel totally comfortable with him performing my surgery. I spoke with 2 women who had the suregery recently (one was 1 week ago, the other 2 months ago) and both had nothing but good things to say. Overall, the entire visit put me at ease and made me comfortable with my decision.