Mark Smolik Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

My first impression of Dr. Smolik was very good. He took a lot of time at our initial consultation to talk with my husband and me about the surgery. he assured us that I was a good candidate for the RNY and he did not rush us whatsoever. My impression has remained very positive of Dr. Smolik. I had a complication of a wound infection post op, and he was very patient with me, and supportive of my decision to try allowing the wound to heal on it's own, rather than rushing in to fix it operatively. The after-care program at Mercy Capitol is very thorough and I like that he is in the weight loss clinic every Wednesday morning, and I could count on seeing him whenever I needed to. I think I chose very wisely when I selected Dr. Smolik to be my surgeon.

I thought Dr. Smolik was nice, seemed to have all the right answers but seemed a little rushed when I met with him, yet he did take time to answer any question that I had. He is very serious about after care and making sure you are aware of the risks involved in this surgery. They do have the extra big chairs in the waiting room, which is really nice. The staff at 1st seemed a little stand offish; but they really are good people and seem to care.

I had my surgery on 9/21/04, I went home on Friday and got an infection in my JP tube on Saturday nite; called the on call surgeon who told me "to not worry and call the office on Monday" not an hour later Dr. Smolik called, questioned my Mom on how I was feeling and if I had a fever, called in an antibiotic. He then called Sunday morning and Sunday nite. I am so glad I had him as my surgeon, and his office staff very professional. These are just my own personal impressions of my experience, I have friends that have gone to this office and loved it.

I really liked Dr. Smolik.

His staff is wishy washy -- some of them are rude and unprofessional -- but that of course is my opinion.

Dr. Smolik is a very knowledgable surgeon. My daughter is 13 and went to me to meet him, and he didn't mince words -- even in the presence of a child. I appreciated that. Of everyone in the world, my daughter will be the most affected if anything should happen to me. Her life will be changed more dramatically than anyones. So, I wanted her to know from an 'authority' on the subject just what we're talking about here. And I feel that she does.

I really dislike most of his staff. They are nice to your face but talk about people behind their backs. I happen to know this, because as I was walking aimlessly in the halls, I heard them. I walked around the corner much to their astonishment. It was very funny watching the looks on their faces.

Now, I will say, that this has been the first and only (to my knowledge) negative comments on Dr. Smolik and his staff. And the negative really isn't about Dr. Smolik. I'm certain that if he would have been there, all the stuff that went on would NOT have even had the opportunity to surface. Dr. Smolik is professional and if I didn't feel comfortable with *him*, I wouldn't have the surgery. But, I really do feel that he was super and knowledable and skilled, and just awesome. I would trust (and am trusting) my life in his hands.

I would rather him be a competent surgeon than have a great bedside manner, but I feel that he has compassion along with great surgery skills.

For some of his staff, however, I wouldn't trust the care my bottle of Aquafina while I went to pee. My opinion, ONLY.

I was impressed with all the surgeons and the bariatric clinic in Des Moines, IA at Mercy Capital. I felt they were very knowledgable on the surgery and very imformative on the risks involved.The clinic is like a family and they treat everyone that comes there with such respect and they dont leave any imformation out. The nurses from the clinic come and see you after surgery they really care about you and want to be a part of your success. The follow-up program is also awesome we have a meeting once a month and we also meet each other through alot of our lectures and have the chance to exchange numbers. I would rate this clinic and the hospital at definately a 10!!!!

I was really impressed by the treatment and education I received at the Mercy Capitol Center for Weight Reduction in Des Moines. The doctors there are very knowledgable and friendly. The nursing staff is quick to offer support and answer questions. I am glad that I made the choice to have my surgery there. The only thing that I would have changed is that I would have liked to have had some pain medication before they took out my G-tube. It really hurt!