Brad Amson Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

****http://members.shaw.ca/kris-wls**** rnrnI spoke with my family doctor about surgery and he in turn referred me to Dr. Van den berg, she in turn referred me to Dr Brad Amson. My initial consult with Dr Amson turned out to be a group consult with 4 other patients. I was very impressed with Dr. Amson - he seems to genuinely care for his patients - he listened, expressed opinions, and did not judge us/me. I'm doing all that Dr. Amson suggested in the consult - support group, learning all I can about wls, exercising more, and eating healthier. Dr. Amson highly \"suggests\" that not only do you see your family doctor every 2 weeks (which I did religiously for 16 months and then switched to every couple months) but that you also excercise for approx 2 hours a day; the last one is a hard one, with working full-time, having a home based business and caring for my 5 year old daughter, but... I'm trying! There is a whole team of people that you have to see if you are a patient of Dr Amson's to see if you are a suitable patient emotionally as well as physically. Dr. Amson's waiting time, from initial consult, seems to be about 18 months to two years IF he sees you are trying to change your lifestyle - after all, wls is a TOOL not a cure to obesity. rnrnI am happy to report that I had my surgery on November 8, 2004! Dr. Brad Amson was my surgeon - and he was great :) You can read all about my surgical experience by visiting my website at http://members.shaw.ca/kris-wls (it's too much to type out again!).

I am extremely impressed with Dr. Amson. My first impression was his compassion and understanding of the struggle of people who struggle with their weight. His office staff is professional and efficient. Dr. Amson is very thorough and he is very focussed on aftercare and a support system for post-op patients. I would rate Dr. Amson as excellent. rnrnWhat is better: his surgical competance and bedside manner is excellent.

My first impression of Dr. Amson was that he was a quiet competent surgeon. My first appointment included two or three small groups made up of both pre and post op patients, all at different stages in the WLS journey. I found this to be extremely helpful as I could have questions answered in person by those who already had surgery, and feel the peace that comes from talking to people who know just where you are coming from. rnMy impression of Dr. Amson has not changed over time, but I can appreciate how much time and energy the surgeon puts in to pre op tests, trying to help each person be as ready as possible for the surgery.rnMost of the office staff has been informative and friendly. I son't envy their job, coordinating different appointments and fielding phone calls from 550+ patients who all want to have their surgery sooner rather than later. I think future patients should know that their appointments may be 3-4 hours in duration, but if you are prepared and open to the experience, it can be a very informative and supportive day.rnAs the wait can be long for the surgery, come to each appointment armed with questions and show him the changes you are making to your lifestyle regarding diet changes, exercise, as well as developing a support system. Show him what you have accomplished, rather than the things you can't and the reasons why. rnOverall I would say that Dr. Amson is completely dedicated to his profession and his patients.

Dr. Amson is awesome. He makes sure that you are active in support groups, making pre-surgical lifestyle changes with both food choices and exercise. He constantly emphasizes that the wls is only a tool and the way I use it will make the difference.
I can not say enough good things about this doctor...his bedside manner, his experience, his advise, his judgement, his surgical competence...all amazing! I now know why people wait years to have him do their surgery.

I am just disgusted that so many people find Dr. Amson to be such a good dr. I find that he has a GOD complex and likes to mess with peoples lives. When my gastroplasty went wrong it took 5 years on the urgent list to have it fixed. (bypass) But when the time came to go into surgery DR. Amson decided that he should reverse it instead of doing the bypass. My thought is that he just wanted to leave early. I begged him not to reverse it because i knew what would happen. But being GOD he decided to do it his way and not do the bypass. As a result I am heavier than i ever was, i now have diabetes and high blood pressure. None of which i ever had before he came and ruined my life. Now all I can think of is how can I end my life so I dont have to live like this until he decides he is going to fix what he should have fixed in the first place. SO DONT TELL ME WHAT A GREAT DR. HE IS. HE IS NOT!

Dr.Amson is the nicest man. He makes you feel so comfortable. rnI find him to be professional at all times. He truly cares for his patients and their well being. rnHis staff is pretty good. They can be frustrating some times. One will tell you something and another will tell you something else. Quite a long wait list time.rnBut well worth the wait.rnrnOn a scale of 1-10. I would rate Dr.Amson a 10...hands down..... I would trust him operating on me anyday. Actually he has operated on me 3 times. And I would want him again in the future if I ever needed surgery again.rnrnDr.Amson has great bed-side manners and superior surgical competence.

DR AMSON IS OK, I LIKE HIM AND TRUST HIM, I HAD A COUPLE OF SURGERIES SO FAR. THE FIRST ONE WAS A PIECE OF HARD FAT THAT WAS IN MY SIDE, I WAS AWAKE FOR THE SURGERY, WENT HOME A FEW HOURS LATER EVERYTHING WAS OK. THEN, I HAD TO HAVE MY GALLBLADDER OUT, WELL THEY PUT ME OUT FOR THAT ONE,I WAS READY TO GO HOME IN A FEW HOURS, I DIDN'T KNOW IT BUT DR AMSON HAD BOOKED ME A ROOM FOR THE NITE, I DIDN'T STAY, I'M LUCKY I HEAL FAST, BESIDES THE FOOD WAS TERRIBLE.HIS OFFICE STAFF ARE PRETTY GOOD, ITS PRETTY HECTIC THERE BUT THEY ARE NICEI THINK HE IS PRETTY HEAVY ON AFTERCARE, THE PATIENTS SEEM TO SEE MORE OF HIM AFTERWARDS, THERE ARE PICTURES OF HIM WITH EVERYONE, HE REMAINS VERY CLOSE TO EVERYONE, HE CAN TELL ME WHERE TO LOOK ON HIS WEBSITE TO SEE HOW EACH ONE IS DOING AND HE WILL WRITE DOWN A FEW PHONE #AND TELL ME TO CALL THEN IF I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE SURGERY.I JUST THINK HE IS A SUPER GUY.rnNEGATIVE? well he can be kind of abrupt, but lets face it, he is a very busy man, once he is sure you are not wasting his time, he is all yours.he is also the father of 7 young girls.

His name is Dr.Amson in Victoria BC Canada
he is a a sweet caring man who was easy to talk to and very understanding and warm. I am very comfortable with him and feel positive about having him as my surgeon. His staff was wonderful I got real talkative to one of the secretaries there she was very sweet and warm as well.
he is very thourough all you need to do is go in fully prepared with your questions and I am sure he will have your answers.

Dr.Amson in November 2002 was quick and efficient in ridding me of my gallbladder. I saw Dr.Amson Sometime around oct-nov 2002 I think. I discussed the pain i was having with my gallbladder and he assured me he would get me in ASAP. I was in and out of hospital a couple of months at least and I got a date of Nov 15th for my date. I ended up having a severe attack and saw him in his office I believe Nov 7th and he said to come into the hospital that weekend as he would be on call. I ended up having really bad pain that night and went to hospital. He had me admitted as he was in hospital that night and I had surgery the morning of Nov 9th. He was attentive and kind and even saved some stones at my request. It turned out 3 stones were blocking the duct. I seriously would tell anyone if you want a surgeon who truly cares for his patients he is the best. I think he goes above and beyond what any other surgeon or dr would do.
He keeps following up on me every few months I see him and he is always very supportive and a wonderful ear to listen. I am honest with him in my shortcomings and he is wonderful in making me I am still doing well and that we all have our moments.
I cannot speak highly enough of him. Truly he is a saint.

His secretaries are all wonderful and caring as well. I know they get many calls and somehow Val one of the main secretaries that works for him keeps track of who is who and what is going on with us all. She truly seems to also care for how Dr.Amson's patients do. I know it is frustrating for the wait and there are many waiting and she gets calls all day long of when when when somehow she keeps it together and she does truly care for the people who come in. Dr.Amson has assembled a wonderful team.

Dr. Amson is a quiet spoken, caring and empathetic individual. As a registered nurse I've come in contact with many physician's and Dr. Amson's demeanour is genuine and caring. He feels that there are numerous factors for obesity, none of which is a lack of control. He stresses the importance of activity pre and post op, gives excellent explainations re proceedures, pre, intra, and post op and risks involved. He has an assessment team which consists of a dietitan, and endocrinologist, and respirologist. His office staff are happy and accomodating. The waits are often long. I'm still waiting for my surgery date, so can't comment on his surgical prowess, however, from my research (nurse to nurse) I hear excellent reports . Having worked in the health care profession for 30 yrs. I can assure you that what's important is surgical competence, having a pleasant bedside manner is a bonus, but honey when you cut into me, I want you to know where you're going. Overall I feel Dr. Amson is an excellent choice, but will update you after the surgery.

I just had my first appointment with Dr. Amson today. I had my Mother go with me as my "Buddy" support.
My appointment was initialy for 10:30 am and I was called the day before with a change to 1:30 pm. I was very nervous when I got the call as I know his office is very busy and backlogged and I was afraid of being rescheduled at a later date.
I was told before hand that it would probably be a 1 hour or more wait but I was in to see him within half an hour of my appointment time.
Dr. Amson had another Doctor with him during our appointment, but both of them put me at ease. As I had spent the last six months researching WLS as an option, I had all of my questions, and all of my accumulated data with me.
Dr. Amson reviewed all the specifics with me, including why he chose to move from restrictive surgery to performing RNY, what the risk factors were, and how I could expect to benefit. I now have a very great level of confidence in him. He was gentle and quite understanding of my emotional duress.
As of this point, he is proceeding to schedule my surgery, as well as send me to see a dietician, and arrange for testing.
As we know in Canada right now, especially in BC, it could be quite a while until my surgical date, but at least its semi-officail and I have lots to look forward to.