Liem Bariatric Center Bariatric Center

My mother taught me that if you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say it at all.
I had my CORRECTIVE Surgery done by Dr. Patricia Beyers at The University of Miami at Jackson Memorial.

Dr. Liem was very quiet and gentle. I had complete confidence in him from the very first appointment.My impression of him really didn't change other than to discover he has a great sense of humor and he is very accessable to his patients. He never rushes you or makes you think he is in a hurry.
His office staff is great, always polite and helpful. The appointments run pretty much on time and you don't have to waste your day sitting in the waiting room. Which means they do not double book as is the practice at some offices. Maria is his right hand and and almost like seeing the doctor.
There was nothing I didn't like about Dr. Liem.
Future patients should know they are placing themselves in one of the best surgeon's care possible.
Dr. Liem now has a very strong support system in place. The group meets twice a month at JFK.
Dr. liem was very straight about the risks. He did not try to sugar coat the information.
I would rate Dr.Liem a 10 on a scale of 1-10.
I think a good bedside manner is very important but if your surgeon is not competent you really might not be around long enough to experience his bedside manner.

I am currently considering Dr. Tenewitz of Melbourne, FL or Dr. Liem of West Palm Beach, FL. I have learned that Dr. Liem participates with BC/BS insurance so I am leaning toward choosing him at the moment.

I have decided to go with Dr. Liem. He participates with my insurance and he says that he should be able to get me approved in 3 to 4 weeks. He seems to be competent. He has done more than 1,500 of the surgeries. I feel very comfortable with allowing him do my surgery.

I met with Dr. Liem for the first time on Tue July 8, 2003. He was very kind, polite and soft spoken. He explained to me about the surgery procedure and he was very competent in his area of work. He has done over 1,000 surgeries so that made me feel real good about this hole process. He and his staff has a strong emphasis on staying and sticking with your aftercare plans. I have completed all of my paper work I am just waiting for my letter to be submitted to the insurance company on Friday July 11, 2003. Wish Me Luckkkkkk!!!!!!!

Dr. Liem was on the quiet side but very nice and was willing to answer any questions I had. All of his staff was courteous and very knowledgeable. So far, I give him and his staff a very high rating.

I was very impressed with the doctor and Maria. She explained everything to me before I met the doctor and both took the time to answer all my questions.
My only problem is the office staff seems very rushed and impersonal. You have to ask several times for paperwork to be faxed. That happened several times and I have heard the same complaint from others.
He has a aftercare program every week and a support meeting once a month. I have yet to attend either but I hope to attend the next ones.

First impression was that Dr. Liem is VERY busy. His office is very small and was packed the day of my appointment. Maria (his nurse) talked to me and my sister first. Explained everything very quickly from pre op to post. And answered my questions. Then Dr Liem came in and went over some things. Im going to one of his meetings at JFK on Monday for more info. His staff seem to be nice, except on the phone, they are always in a rush. It seems he has added recently a more structured after care program. Only surprise was the cost of the aftercare, that the insurance doesnt cover.

I FEEL THAT DR. LIEM IS AN EXCELLENT SURGEON.
COMPASSIONATE, CARING AND DEDICATED....
LOVE YA DR. LIEM!!!!

My first impression of Dr. Liem was comfort. I felt good talking to him and did not feel like I was being judged. He seemed to understand my position and wants to help me be a better person. I am so glad that I met Dr. Liem and his office staff. I look forward to working with them toward a better life. His office staff has been willing to help me. They are very polite and willing to help you. I don't think there is anything that I didn't like about him or the office. I even felt comfortable in the waiting room. All the clients are there for the same thing so we chat and support each other. Do not be afraid to ask questions! They are willing to help you if you ask for the help. They were very informative about the after care and stressed the importance of taking care of myself. They stress the importance of having people there to support you also. They make sure that you understand everything! If you aren't sure on something, ask. The doctor and his assistant went over everthing and asked repeatedly if I had any questions. They also stated that if I ever have any questions at any time to call them and they will be glad to cover it again. I would highly recommend Dr. Liem and his office to anyone who is considering having the gastric bypass.

I'll give my opinion of Dr. Liem's WLS program. I HEAR that he is outstanding while in the operating room, but I feel he needs to be more direct with his patients and could also be more involved with them personally. When I had my surgery, he only had a monthly support group (at a hospital where you either had to valet or pray for a parking spot-JFK). Nothing very personal. No requirements for counseling or nutritionist visits. Nothing. (The support group was too large for any personalization.)

He also recently gave me a major scare by saying my esophogus was stretching. (You can die if your esophogus stretches and tears.) What did he base that on? A 3-month post op upper GI. Why? I don't know. I later found out that it appears as if I had acid reflux (something he didn't tell me I had). He also didn't seem concerned that I'd gained 47 pounds since my last visit 9 months ago (most was gained within the last four-five months). No questions of exercise, diet, support group visits, etc. Nothing.

I heard from someone (who is only 5 months post-op) that he tells his patients different suggestions (diet, etc..). This was one of my complaints after having my surgery 21 months ago.

I highly recommend looking around. His program was/is not very structured and even though he has told his patients he can "open them up again and take away more intestines," I'm not willing to give him the $3000. I should have been given that option 21 months ago like some of his other patients were.

After reading the above and risking possible unhappy emails, I feel I need to explain a little more. I know I seem very pessimistic, but I feel you need to know everything. After my tube became stuck (after my surgery), Dr. Liem didn't seem overly concerned, even when food would "shoot" out from it (sorry for being gross, but that's what happened). I went through two diagnostic procedures with two different radiologists. I was scheduled twice for outpatient surgery; they were canceled both times. Finally, after 8 weeks, the tube magically came out by itself. I understand this is happening with a little more frequency nowadays. No it wasn't his fault, or at least I guess it wasn't his fault, but I felt he was too blase (pronouned "blah-zay"-forgive the spelling error) about it

Wondering why I never dumped or vomited NO MATTER WHAT I ATE, I asked for an upper GI. Dr. Liem said something was going back into the old stomach (!?!) and to contact him if I stopped losing weight. I did. This is when he told me about the "stretching of the esophogus." WOW! That was a first. Not fully understanding the serious nature of this, Maria, his assistant, asked me if I knew how "dangerous" this was. Obviously I didn't. Dr. Liem didn't seem overly concerned. This frightened me. I had to go to the specialist he referred me to. Of course, he wasn't on my insurance. I finally got my approval and went. I read the "old" upper GI results to my friend, a nurse, and she said it sounded as if something was leaking into my old stomach. I still don't know what's going on. The upper endoscopy didn't seem to show any stretching. However, I'm still waiting for 2 biopsy results.

I will concur that Dr. Liem is very nice, however, even though he is having small groups (or so I hear), you have to either read his mind or know exactly what needs to be asked. Unless you've been through this or have a background in medicine, you need to have ESP.

I don't regret having the surgery, however, I wish I had gone to a surgeon that could explain things better (in layman's terms) and had a very structured, strict program. That seems to be the difference between his programs and other surgeons' programs I've read about.


These are personal impressions of my own personal experience and/or of those I have spoken with (with my interpretation of what I may have heard.)