Ioannis Raftopoulos Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

AT FIRST I HATED THE MAN. THEN AFTER MY SURGERY I LOVED THE MAN. HE TRULY CARES ABOUT HIS PATIENTS. HE WAS THERE FOR ME AT TIMES WHEN HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN RESTING. I GOT SICK AFTER MY SURGERY AND HE MADE THE TIME TO SEE ME EVERY TIME I NEEDED IT. HIS DEMEANOR MAY BE A LITTLE ROUGH AROUND THE EDGES BUT I DON'T THINK I WOULD BE AT WHERE I AM NOW IF IT WEREN'T FOR HIM AND HIS STAFF. IN THE BEGINNING HE MADE SURE I KNEW ABOUT ALL THE RISKS, THE PROS, THE CONS, EVERYTHING I NEEDED. HIS BEDSIDE MANNER MAY BE HARD TO UNDERSTAND AT THE TIME BUT LATER ON YOU WILL REALIZE JUST HOW NECESSARY IT IS!!rnrnHE IS THE BEST!!

FIRST IMPRESSION- very knowledgable, very professionalrnOVER TIME- absolutely wonderful,,he went above and beyond his duties as a surgeon. very concerned for my well being.rnOFFICE STAFF- very nice,,very hard to get a hold of by phonernLIKED LEAST ABOUT SURGEON- too stirict on diet...lol...rnAFTERCARE- yes, he said its very importantrnRISKS OF SURGERY- he explained themrnOVER ALL RATING OF SURGEON- exellentrnSURGICAL COMPETENCE is best

One of my very first impressions of Dr. Raftopoulos was that he was not very warm and personable. That still may very well be true, but I've come to appreciate him as he is because he is an outstanding bariatric surgeon and I made it through without any major complications, thanks to him. He is a no-nonsense kind of doctor and can seem strict but I do believe it's because he wants you to succeed. Overall, I would rate him as being an outstanding surgeon and give him a 10+. In my opinion, competence is more important than bedside manner...I certainly feel lucky to be alive and well even though we're not buddies. I can live with that!

Dr. Raftopoulos comes off very stern at first but that's because you come to learn that he strives to be the best at what he does. His sternness is always based on his concern for his patients well being. He is always readily available and is as about as hands on with his subjects as possible. I would rate him an 11 out of 10. He is just that good.

I met Dr Ioannis Raftopoulos for my initial consultation March 14th. I picked him because everyone I spoke to about him said he was one of the best. That day his appointments were running 3 hours late because of a surgery earlier in the day that took longer than expected. When I finally met him, he was still in his scrubs and he looked very tired. But, he was still polite, knowledgeable and informative. He took the time to explain everything to me thoroughly and make sure all my questions were answered. He did equally cover the negative and positive points about the surgery. I wasn't sure how the meeting was going to go, since it was so late. But, he didn't mind staying until everything was finished and I liked that! I didn't feel rushed or hurried. rnrnOver time my impression of the surgeon didn't change but his office staff was less that helpful. I had to leave multiple messages and I only talked to someone when I had time to call back several times until they actually answered the phone. In the end, I had to resort to calling the office manager and explaining my situation, to get any results. rnrnI can't comment on any of the other points because the Dr is leaving the practice before he will get a chance to do my surgery. :( So my file was sent to another surgeon. I was referred to Dr. Carol McCloskey. rnrnI'll write a review on Dr. McCloskey once I meet her on August 7th.rn

MY FIRST IMPESSION WAS THAT HE WAS A PEFECTIONIST. A GREAT QUALITY I THINK TO HAVE IN A SURGEON. I HAD ALL THE CONVIDENCE IN THE WORLD IN HIM. I REALLY WOULDN'T HAVE WANTED ANYONE ELSE. I KNOW I WAS A TOUGH CASE FOR HIM BUT IT DID IT AND NOW BEING ONLY 5 DAYS OUT, EVEYTHING IS GOING GREAT. HE SAVED MY LIFE, AND BY THE WAY HE IS SO GOOD LOOKING. HE IS STRICT BUT I THINK THAT IS BECAUSE HE REALLY CARES ABOUT HIS PATIENTS. HIS AFTERCARE SO FAR HAS BEEN EXCELLENT, HE HAS CALLED TWICE SINCE I HAVE RETURNED HOME. HE MADE ME FEEL AT EASE WITH THE SURGERY. HE HAS HAD NO DEATHS AND HE DOUBLE SEWS TO PREVENT LEAKAGE, I THINK A PROCEDURE THAT HE HAS TOOK UPON HIS SELF TO DO. HONESTLY I WOULD RATE HIM A 10. I WOULD HAVE TO GO WITH SURGICAL COMPETENCE, ALTHOUGH I SAW NOTHING WRONG WITH HIS BEDSIDE MANNER.

My first impression of him was that he was quite mean. My impression changed when I found that he was not mean he is just a doctor who cares and who is strict will the patient following all the rules before and after surgery. His office staff are wonderful. One nurse in particular (Babs) was so nice she even set up all my pretesting for me. There was nothing that I did not like about Dr.Raft. To anyone thinking of surgery should speak w/this doctor cause he has had no pt deaths and no leaks in over a year. Thats impressive. His aftercare is wonderful as well.. He called me twice after suregery to see if I had any questions or concerns and to see how I was feeling. Dr. Raft has a very structured aftercare program. About five days after suregery is your first visit than about a week after that than a month than follow up visitis once a year. He is very serious about his follow up visits. He explained the risk of surgery in full length and even sent me in the mail a website to watch to see the procedure and the risk factors. My rating of this doctor is very high. His surgincal competence and bedside manner are both great. He's awesome.....rn

Dr. Raftopoulos seemed confident in his knowledge of this type of proceedure.rnrnHe was great at making sure I understood everything and any questions I had. rnrnHis office staff was AWESOME! Nurse Bapps is fantastic. She had the surgery and proof of its success. rnrnI have NO! negative feedback about my doctor or his staff. rnrnI highly suggest Dr. Raftopoulos and his staff. He called me for the first few days after my surgery to check in with me and my progress. He was on top of it. rnrnrnrn

I was very happy with my first impresson of Dr. Raftopoulos, and it didn't change with time he was great as was his staff they are very informative and so very friendly. Dr. Raftopoulos is very thorough with before care and after care. He has a strict regimine to follow but its because he cares about his work and his patients. He makes sure you are aware of the risks and he weighs the options with you. on an over all scale I would rate him at a 98% I only would change one thing--- His location is so far from me...I wish he was closer for my appointments. I think surgical care and bedside manner are both very very important parts of your experience and your recovery. Dr. Raftopoulos has great skill in both.

Excellent first impression. Very professional, yet compassionate. While of foreign decent, he speaks clear, understandable English.

Babs, Dr. R's nurse is the BEST!

Dr. R's record is good. Hundreds of procedures, no deaths, no leaks (as of my last appointment).

He spoke clearly of the risks of surgery. He said that his group tries very hard to minimize the likelihood by requiring EXTENSIVE pre-surgical testing. He said that he has no reason to suspect that I will have a problem.

Clearly, surgical competence should be everyone's first concern. However if you can have both, as in Dr. R, you are a lucky person.

I am a little curious about the lack of emphasis upon pre or post-surgery support group participation. Perhaps he sensed that I would not be the kind of person who would enjoy that environment, but I do not recall it being suggested.