Overlake Hospital Medical Center Bariatric Center

First I want to be known, I had no real complications from my bypass surgery just the feel of being sick. What I do want to say is the issue with the doctor and his understanding of chronic pain patients due to disease as well as hospital. I suffered in pain for 7 day from day after surgery on. Reason, doctor took away my pain MGMT meds after surgery and gave me a pump. Even as. Stated I was in pain, I was not given my meds. I spoke with a number of pain MGMT doctors and they said standard practice is to give normal meds, then the meds like the PCA, or pain pump, so I'm not in pain while withdrawal ing. Seemed I was just being ignored by Overlake and my doctor. When I went home I suffered for 5 days as my normal pain MGMT meds did not touch surgery pain. Doctors words to me.. " no one dies from pain, but do from pain meds so you just need to deal with it, even when nurses were surprised" So if your in pain MGMT prior to surgery you might want to find a different hospital and doctor...... Overlake bariatics(spelling) the doctor just doesn't have experience with folks like me......if your not a pain MGMT patient then he is a great doctor. Just don't expect him to care if you hurt or or take other meds.....I had to stay in chair last two days as I couldn't sleep due to withdrawal and no sleep meds period.

Dr. Nguyen is a great surgeon. I had RNY surgery done by him 5/5/14 and I have had no difficulties at all. His office is a bariatric center of excellence and my treatment from them confirms this. His staff are very positive and encouraging people. I have absolutely no regrets choosing him as my surgeon.

I started this Journey Feb 2013, I was 311 lbs, diabetic, high blood pressure, cpap machine, depression,had been on every diet plan there was and still not able to loose weight. My girlfriend gave me a newspaper piece to read on obesity . My husband and I went to a seminar on the different types of weight loss surgery , I thought I wanted Lab band, easy, and painless, I went to NWWC and talked to a Dr. there but my insurance would not cover it, so Dr Thien Nguyen at Overlake Hospital was recommended , went to see him and had told him what I wanted and he told me that with all of my medical issues he would not do the lab but he would do the Gastric by pass, I was scarred to death so my husband and I talked for a few minutes and decided that the Gastric would be done, I had the surgery Dec 9 2013, I now have lost 88 lbs and not diabetic, cpap machine was turned down from 20 to 9 and off of 4 of my meds, More energy than I have had in a very long time, now I will be around for our grandson and see him get married and see his children, not being diabetic was very important to me . I am out of a size 5x top and in a size 2x and out of 5x pants and in sixe 18 have lost 16 " in my waist and 17" in my hips. I love my new life and no one recognizes me, I love the new me my goal is 165 by Sept 2014 that will be my 60th birthday. a new me. My husband tell me that I am a very cheep date since I can't eat very much which is fine with me. I take all of my vitamins . If you are thinking about surgery listen to the Dr and do everything that he or she says and it will work. I highly recommend Dr. Nguyen he is wonderful and all of the staff is great. Get a picture of you before and after you wond believe the difference . I have one on my wall that I look at every day and still cant believe the difference. They tell you that your hair will fall out and it does,

Dr. Nguyen did my surgery as well as my wife's Gastric Bypass two weeks later. I'm not sure what a previous poster meant about Dr. Nguyen "ditching" them as we have found the doctor and his staff, as well as their support and
aftercare programs, to be extensive, thorough, and plenty. prior to surgery, whether I called or emailed, I always got a prompt response. One time Dr. Nguyen even called me to address some of my concerns directly. He is a very caring man, very interested in what is best for us. We have attended the support group off and on for almost two years where the staff (a nutritionist, a counselor and a nurse) is there to answer all questions and support us in any way they can. We have heard of other hospitals' programs and it seems Overlake and Dr. Nguyen have put a stellar team and support system into place for us compared to some others. You are definately not alone here and can get all the support you ask for. Between my wife and I, we have lost 270 pounds and are loving life! Thanks to Dr. Nguyen and his staff for our new lives!

He will ditch you once your surgery is over..... there is little to no aftercare. I switched doctors.

There aren't enough stars to express how amazing my Doc is. Dr Nguyen and his whole staff have gone above and beyond to help me. I truly hope everyone has the same experience with their doctor that I've had.
My first meeting with him was no nonsense. without being condescending or patronizing he gave me the facts of my weight and what the surgery will and will not do for me.
I had a lap band 7 years prior and felt like I had been tossed out after that surgery with no guidance or follow up. Dr. Nguyen has been the exact opposite. I cannot express how much I appreciate him, his staff and all of the staff at Overlake hospital.

Dr. Nguyen is a fantastic surgeon. He takes the time to answer all my questions. He made me feel at ease. He's pretty businesslike. My surgery went really well. I was in the hospital 2 days. No pain. Five small incisions all healed up within a week. I would highly recommend him and overlake hospital.

I was apprehensive to have a consult with any WLS Dr. I did some research and was impressed that Dr. Nguyen had done a fellowship in Bariatric surgery. That is what led me to him. I found his office to extremely helpful and that Dr. Nguyen took his time with me, answering all my questions, doing a thorough check to make sure I would qualify with my insurance company. I appreciated all his input and left with a binder outlying all that I needed to know for my post op lifestyle. I met with a great Nutritionist who worked with Dr. Nguyen to make sure I understood what I needed to do. I was offered the chance to have the robotic surgery done with Dr. at the wheel. I was more than happy to opt for it. I had less bruising and minimum pain post surgery. I find that not only is his bedside manner pleasing, but his surgical competence to be superb. I have since lost all the weight I needed to to be in a normal BMI. I know that if I have any questions, Dr's office won't sit on it, but will ask and get an answer right away. I appreciated it and it changed my life. Thank you!

After a stint in the ER December 2012 I was referred to Dr. Nguyen. My bariatric surgery was in PA in 2008. At our first meeting I immediately felt Dr. Nguyen's confidence and concern; within the month after a CT scan in the ER and diagnostic ultrasound, I had hiatal hernia and internal hernia repair.

His office staff, though likeable, don't seem to be the most organized. I have waited for a significant period of time in the waiting room (over 75 minutes). However, if you are looking for what I consider a competent, intelligent and compassionate physician, Dr. Nguyen is the guy for you!

I am very happy that I chose Dr. Nguyen for my RNY Gastric Bypass surgery. He comes off as a bit more serious and reserved than some of the other doctors I consulted with and he's fairly young. However, he has an excellent reputation and I liked the fact that he had a fellowship in bariatric surgery (which isn't that common), which means he spent an extra year on top of the normal general surgery requirements just focusing on bariatric surgeries. I felt very well prepared pre-op. He gives his patients a binder of info with tons of information including example menus for the different food stages post-op. He explained the risks to me and thoroughly explained the surgery during our consult. I did not feel rushed at all and I felt very comfortable talking to him. I have noticed on follow-up post-op appts that he sometimes runs late and he can seem a little abrupt or stressed in our appts, but I always feel that he answers my questons thoroughly and still gives me all of his attention even on days when I know he's running behind. I would highly recommend him to anyone considering WLS because I think he is an excellent surgeon and I have been very happy with how I've been treated pre-op and post-op. Also his staff is very nice too! If you need someone who is warm and fuzzy, he may not be the doctor for you, but he is a very nice and sincere man and an excellent surgeon and I think that's what really matters.

I also want to say that I had a very smooth and easy recovery. I think it was a Saturday that I came home and that night I took a sip of water when I woke up to use the bathroom which oddly enough gave me heartburn. I called his office the next day, Sunday, and he called me back a little while later, which I was very pleased and impressed by his taking the time to call me on a Sunday for something so unimportant as heartburn.