Guillermo Alvarez Bariatric Surgeon MD

My experience with Dr. Alvarez and the staff in Mexico was absolutely wonderful. From the moment I met Rosy and shared the fears of going to Mexico, with her experience and knowledge she gently and calmly put those fears to rest. I would encourage anyone considering having WLS to definitely consider this very competent surgeon. Not only are he and his staff highly qualified, but you can feel and see the incredible passion they have to help the Obese achieve a higher quality of life. I had surgery on Dec. 2, 2008 and I feel great and have had absolutely no complications whatsoever. The care afterwards was better than I could even imagine. Susan called me at the hotel once I was back in San Antonio to see how I was doing and Dr. Alvarez has emailed me since I have been home to make sure I was doing good and if I had any questions concerning the surgery. I don't know of any surgeon in the US that does that! I would recommend anyone to Dr. Alvarez…. He is awesome!!! Between Dr. Alvarez (the most awesome surgeon), Susan (the sweetest, nicest, patient coordinator), Rosy (the beautiful, fun driver) and all of the rest of the staff, I had the most wonderful surgical experience in Mexico. I look forward to seeing Dr. Alvarez and the rest of the team in Las Vegas for the reunion in March.rnrn

I have researched Dr. Alvarez and can not find anything negative. My PCP approved of him and going to Mexico and I am set. I have spoke with Susan who has set everything up for me. She is super nice, understanding and VERY helpful. So the next step is liquids for 14 days before surgery Nov. 28, yeah.rnrnWow. My mom and I traveled to Eagle Pass.rnWe arrived on Thanksgiving and the Holiday Inn was very nice. We were picked up by Rosie at 645AM. Got in the van and off over the border which was no big deal at all. Rosie gave my mom all kinds of information about the town and where she might want to go. We go into the Doctors office and wait for a few minutes and he arrives. He calls me in and as soon as he talked my mom felt better. She was so worried about the whole thing. She asked questions and he answered everything for her and she felt the stress just go away. Then his nurse came and got us and she was very sweet and kind. They were cleaning the suites up so but me in room #7 for pre-op they started my IV. I was very nervous at this time so they gave me something to relax. Well all I remember is waking up in my suite #29 I think. I was hurting ( I do not handle pain well) but Dr. Alvarez was standing right there and said hold on give me 5 minutes and you will feel better, lol it was more like 5 seconds. I slept for 5 hours and when I woke up I felt much better. My mom was MIA and I got up and made it to bathroom and before I knew it people were checking on me. My mom would go downstairs to smoke and I would go with her and walk the 1st floor hallway. Then we went back up to room and relax. My mouth was very dry very very dry but it is just part of the anethesia is what Dr. Alvarez told me. That was the hard part for me the first night. My mom went and had empanadas across the street with a patient next doors mom. My mom said the food was great and the company was better. The next day Christina and Dr. Alvarez were checking on me. I walked the halls some more and then I was able to get the IV out and the surgery wraps off my legs and go to his office and do a leak test. All was well so then Dr. Alvarez said I could have some water. He was so nice and helpful and took me back to room. My mom needed change and he got her change. My mom needed a chair, he got her a chair. He helped to make her comfortable and that meant alot to me. The other patient and left early that morning and we had a new patient. So off my mom was making friends. I was able to shower and that felt great. The bathroom was really nice. I was sleeping on and off. Well before I knew it my mom was having dinner with this patient husband and coming back and we went out to go smoke, not me but my mom. We walked in and there was Dr. Alvarez. He was coming up to check on us, Wow. No US doctor that I know of would do that. He was right on top of things and really cared about his patients. He gave me something to help me sleep and it did. My mom said a trauma came in that night and it was a little loud, I never heard a thing. The next morning Dr. A was there he gave me all my discharge instructions and medicine I would need to take and told me to email him when we got home so he knew we would be home safe. He then helped my mom get all the luggage and walked us to van. The whole experience was amazing. From the first day I arrived I knew I was in safe hands. The hospital was a little old but very clean. The rooms are very nice and the night nurses are very nice. They wear the white nurse dresses with the little white nurse caps, at night they were very gentle with taking blood pressure or changing IV bag. If you needed something there is a button on your bed to push and they were right there to try and help you. Honestly if I had to have surgery again I would rather be there then at home where you get pushed through like a number. No people coming in grapping a chart at the end of your bed, not a million faces coming in and out of your room and surely not a surgeon who checks on you 5 times a day. At the very beginning of this decision I was not sure about Mexico. Then reading stories on here made me feel better and then when my doctor at home ok'd it I felt good. Well I can tell you it was great. Dr. Alvarez is very caring and knows your name and is concerned for your health, comfort and overall being. If you plan on having gastric sleeve surgery I can tell you Dr. Alvarez is the way to go, any questions feel free to email me. The great news my surgery was Nov. 28 I was 259.6 today December 9 I am 245 pounds. 14.6 pounds 12 days post-op. Also I found about 5 or 6 channels in English and had the computer to send emails back home. There is a phone outside of the room and alot of people called to check on me.I can tell you that my experience was great, I would highly recommend Dr. Alvarez, his staff and his hospital to anyone.

When i first met Dr Alvarez and his team I knew i was in good hands by their professionalism. From the minute Rosie picked me up in San Antonio I felt at ease. I then met Dr Alvarez and Dr. Rosales and private nurse Christina. We went over all the surgery questions that i had and they described everything in detail. Very easy to talk to and all my questions were answered. Of course all the risks were talked about, also after surgery Dr. Rosales went over in detail what i need to do afterwards for aftercare. I know it sounds phoney, but there was nothing abouut my trip that made me want to change my mind. I would send any of my family to these surgeons in a minute if they needed this surgery. If i had to rate my overall experience it would be 10 out of 10! If you are wanting more info please contact me and i will give you more about my experience! The only problem i had was that I had to travel an extra day because i had to come from so far. It was a long trip home!

In my book on a scale from 1-10 Dr. Alvarez and his staff are a 20! From the moment I spoke with Susan I felt I was going to the right Dr. When I met Rosie at the hotel, her kindness, cheery disposition and information just reinforced this. Then my husband and I met Dr. A. He was exactly as I had heard. The best bedside manner you could ever hope for. Kind, caring, concerned, willing to listen, knowledgeable. My husband is not easily impressed and he was very impressed. Christine, his nurse is so sweet. She was always there, usually before you needed her! I didn't have any problem whatsoever with any nurses not speaking English. Hand signals worked easily plus they seem very accustomed to the few English words you may need to use. I really didn't need to ask for anything as my needs were all taken care of before I knew I had them. Dr. Alvarez's surgery skills are amazing. I just had my gallbladder out 1 month prior and couldn't think that this surgery would be easier but it was! Amazing! I could have left the next day without any issues, but the fact Dr. A keeps you there for two days just shows his concern to watch over you. He was always there too. I've never had a doctor check in on me so many times each day. I have not told anyone at home (except my husband) that I had surgery, including my kids. Not one person has the least bit of a clue, that's how good Dr. A is! Dr. A's office is very contemporary and nice. When you go across to the hospital it is older but do not let that sway your decision. When you get into his area, the suites are redone and very nice. The bathroom/shower area is beautiful. There is a computer in every room and a phone you can make calls home with are all available to you. The entire hospital is so clean. Even the sidewalk area outside looked like it had been mopped. The only time I was even in the older part of the hospital was when I was walking and it was as spotless as the rest. So this is really not a concern at all. This experience was amazing all the way around. My husband and I were able to be tourists two days after my surgery walking around The Alamo and down at the Riverwalk in San Antonio. That night at our hotel, we received a call from Susan checking on us we had been out of there care for six hours. Dr. A and his staff have got it down to a science with personality! Do not be afraid to cross the border, you are never alone and it is completely safe. If my children needed surgery I would not hesitate to take them there. My whole experience was wonderful, if you are trying to decide where to go and contemplating Dr. A, just give them a call or email and you will understand first hand what I'm speaking of. Thank you so much Dr. Alvarez!!!!!

Dr. Alvarez is FANTASTIC!!! A+++++. I loved him and would highly recommend him to anyone!! The experience was great from the moment I met Dr. A till the day I left. I had my surgery on 10/8/08 and I am a size 10 now!!! Wow!! Haven't been this weight in 10 years!!! I can't be happier! THANK YOU DR. ALVAREZ!!!

I love Dr Alvarez. There is nothing negativernthat can be said about him or his staff. They were wonderful and took such great care of me. He talked with me upon arrrival with no time constraints. He explained everything and rnleft me with no questions unanswered. He checked in on me many times during day and night giving me a secure feeling that I went with the right Dr. I would recommended him to anyone considering going with the best of the best for this journey. Thank you Dr Alvarez, his staff and Rosie for making the experience a positive one..... I rate him 11 out of 10...rn

when i met DR.alvarez i felt at ease not nervous anymore he is as nice as can be and very proffessional! the staff was very attentive too! he was very thorough in explaining all the steps before and for after surgery. i would highly reccommend him to anyone who is wanting to have any bariatric surgery specially if they are paying out of pocket! had a great experience!!!!!!!!

I first found out about Dr. A on OH. He seemed almost too good to be true. I did my due diligence and chose him as my VSG surgeon. I could not be happier with the choice. Dr. A is an excellent surgeon and an excellent caregiver. In my experience, that's not an easy combination to find. He never made me feel like I was asking stupid questions or using too much of his valuable time. His expertise, humility and grace make him very easy to talk with. He answered all questions thoroughly and responded to all requests for information and guidance without having to be reminded. He spoke in terms that were easy for me to understand.rnHis attitude obviously carried through to his staff. Dr. Rosales, Susan, Rosy, and the lovely Christina were all competent and caring and very forthcoming.rnThe post-op instructions are very clear and contact information is made available at every turn. Dr. A and Susan have both contacted me since I've been home to follow up on my progress.rnI realize this \"review\" is all good, and I've really searched to try to think of anything at all negative to relate, but there's just nothing in that column at all. Zero. I would recommend this surgeon to my family and friends wholeheartedly. And did I mention cute and sexy?

I was banded in May of 2007, moving on to vsg Nov 2008.rnrnI was never contacted by my Doctor once surgery was done. Dr Snow was my lab band doc. rnrnI am hoping for more success with vsg. I am not saying lap band is a bad choice it just did not work for me. I am schedule with Dr A in Mexico.rnrnLeaving for vsg in the morning!

Very nice man . My impression of him only got better with time . His staff is unbeatable , Susan , Rosey and Christina are the best . I would trust him doing surgery on any of my family ! There was nothing i did not like about him the only thing that could be better is if they had a night nurse who spoke english . But you can still communicate with them . Future patients should know that Dr Alvarez and Dr Rosales are fantastic and you are in great hands . They emphasize that the after care and diet need to be followed 100% . They were very clear on the risks involved and answered all questions very well . On a scale of 1 to 10 I would rate them a 10+++++++. Both surgical competence and bedside manner were superb. I have already recomended them to people. Now with all that being said . The only thing I could see that might make people happier would be for the hospital building to be newer looking . It was immaculate and the cleaning people were always working . I think that our architecture in the stateside hospitals are a waste of money .