James Maher Bariatric Surgeon M.D.,F.A.C.S.

The wait for a consultation is 9-12 months. They are hoping to get another doctor soon. I am number 250 on the waiting list.

My meeting with Dr. Maher went very well. He is a large man, so my first impression was intimidation. After we began speeking, he made me feel very comfortable. We went over all of my history, and he advised me that I was a good candidate for surgery. He transcribed the referal letter for insurance over the phone while I was in the office with him. We did go over the basics for surgery: risks, eating change, weight change, emotional change....
He did ask me to stand so that he could see where my excess weight was distributed. He did not say anything, but I did see that he jotted down on paper "body shape = apple". That is not negative, but the truth hurts sometimes.

As of today, September 9th, I still have not
received any paperwork from the surgeon's
office. I have talked with the nurse on the
phone. She sounds very nice and understanding.
She said that the office sends out the paper-
work for the consultation appointment about
4-6 weeks beforehand. I haven't gotten any
papers yet. Every day I check the mailbox and
every day I say, "Well, maybe tommorrow."

11/14/2000 I made a frantic dash to Iowa City about a month ago. Deb, Dr. Maher's nurse, returned my call and asked that I come and fill in for a cancelled appointment - in three days. Well, after getting the day off and filling up the van, I set off to Iowa (about 6 hours from Grand Island). I took my mother, the nurse, with me for support and information. We were there on time and only waited a half hour. After getting in, we met with Deb, Dr. Doughtery - another surgeon and a dietian. Four hours later we were back on the road. I feel the meeting was a success because they said I would me an excellent candidate for the procedure. The only roadblock right now is the insurance. My present company will be out of business at the end of the year and we will be getting a new one.

09/18/2001 Dr. Maher's schedule is booked up to six
months ahead of time. Must be extremly patient if you
want to see him.

4/13/01 I just met Dr. Doherty yesterday. He was a very nice man, very reassuring. He was direct about the risks and direct about the benefits. He did a physical and picked up on some other problems I was having. I felt he was very thorough. His nurse, Debi was awesome. She is really nice. You can talk to her about anything, I can tell she's a major support outlet for the patients. The visit went smoothly. The only annoying thing was that I wished I would have made a "previously failed diets" resume. I was asked to recite my diet history so many times. Maybe it was a test. :)
Basically it was a good visit. It took about 4 hours in total. I have another appointment with him in a few weeks to go over the results of the tests he ordered. Then, because he assists in the laproscopic surgery, I'll have to go to Dr. Maher also.

Very friendly and supportive. The nursing staff at Iowa City was also very friendly and supportive.