Christian Tvetenstrand Bariatric Surgeon M.D.,F.A.C.S.

8-18-00
I saw my surgeon for the first time yesterday. My first impression was positive, for the most part. He is soft-spoken and friendly. I am glad I studied and researched as much as I did, though, because he wasen't real explicit in his explanation of the surgery. He did give me an information packet, though, which explained things pretty well. He asked if I understood the risks of surgery. When I told him I've has surgery 4 times he asked for details and then seemed satisified that I understood the risks. I don't know much about his aftercare program except what was in the packet. This included a diet plan for the first 3 weeks and some general info on eating. Also that I must be prepared for at least a year of followup. He did mention some of the nutritional supplements that I would need. I got the impression he would go into more detail on that later. If he dosen't, I will surely ask him.
His office staff seemed nice enough. The girl who seemed to be handling my stuff appeared to know the ins & outs of insurance approval quite well. This was reassuring.
I would recommend to anyone seeing Dr. Tvetenstrand to do your homework-educate yourself as much as possible about the surgery so you can discuss it intelligently with him. I think he was sort of letting me take the lead as to how much information I wanted when he saw that I already had quite a bit. Also, when the visit was over I asked the nurse if I would have another appt. before surgery. She said no and I said that there were some questions I still wanted to ask. That was no problem. The dr. came back and was willing to spend all the time necessary with me. Also he has no problem using stitches on my incision instead of staples at my request.
One other thing I want to say about this doctor that gave me confidence. He had another dr. with him (Who I presume is in training, as this is a teaching hospital) She is a young girl. Did not participate in the visit, just observed. But when Dr. T left the room, she said to me quietly, "You're in good hands. He's very good." Also My gastroenteroligist whom I saw last week (and is not too keen on this surgery) said I picked a good surgeon who will guide me in the right direction. So I feel confident about his ability.

Dr. Tevetenstrand is a delightful, young man with a heart and seems to have a good understanding of this type of surgery and the angst of the patient going through it. My impression has remained the same and I truly believe he cares. His nurse, Liz, is a hardworking, knowledgeable professional who has been nothing but the best since we began this ordeal with the insurance company. We haven't done much in terms of aftercare but the information packet I was given when we met was thoroughly reviewed by her and she is open to any questions I may have. I believe she is involved with a group at the hospital where my surgery will take place and she makes the arrangements with the patient once they have recuperated. Liz approached the surgery and its risks with great concern and professional advice.I felt as though I was an individual case not one of a thousand others in an assembly-line process. So far both the doctor and his nurse have been supportive and helpful, but this is strictly my personal impression. Competence and bedside manner are both a necessity and until surgery I can only attest to what I have experienced thus far.

Nice but not overly interested in why i felt I should have this surgery. After he decided I was viable, that was about it.Office staff is wonderful. I have called his asst about a hundred times with questions and she never acted like I was a pain. He stresses strongly the importance of excercise and follow-up visits. He went over the possible risks and complications.I think he is a good doctor and an excellent surgeon. I believe both competence and bedside manner are important but When it's me going under the knife, I want the best. Afterwards I will worry about bedside manners. My doctor is the reason I am getting surgery covered by bc/bs. I couldnt get documentation of my weightloss attempts, for various reasons, and my doctor wrote two letters on my behalf which made the insurance company decide in my favor.