Mark Vierra Bariatric Surgeon M.D.

I have not met with Dr Vierra yet. I am waiting for approval for first consultation. I have had psych evaluation and paperwork is being processed.
Well good news, I got approval for first consultation with Dr Vierra. I called and left a message for Michelle to call me back and set a date for first consultation. She should call me back Tuesday Sept 5th. Wish me luck.

Sept 5th Well I got a call from DR Vierra's office today, They can't see me for even the intial cconsultation until sometime next year. I now will call my medical group John Muir Medical Group. This is not acceptable and I will pursue a sooner date even if it means requesting a different surgeon.

My first impression was very bad. I actively sought and found 3 other surgeons after meeting Dr. Vierra to enable me to have a surgeon I felt compatable with. He is very quiet, intense and non communicative at first. He scared me. He was a bit stern and strict it seemed.

When I found out that the surgery would be laproscopic I decided to go with Dr. Vierra despite my intense reservations. He reluctantly agreed to operate and since he is the only doctor I know of locally, I felt the cost in time and money travelling to Southern California would outweigh my discomfort.

I have since changed my impression. As I had complications after surgery, I was able to see the deep concern Dr. Vierra had for me. (bowel obstruction) I also met a woman that I became friends with who works around him and I was able to get clearer insight into his depth of devotion and knowledge of this procedure. He showed deep concern as I was not doing well after the surgery. He came to my room nearly every day.

The assistant, Michelle, was impatient with me at first, getting very exasperated when I called back several weeks after my initial visit. She has since been a little more tolerant and I have worked hard to be understanding of her stress level. She seems to be very stressed out. Perhaps she was trying to be very professional?

Future patients should know that you must come to Dr. Vierra prepared (and I mean prepared) with questions and a basic knowledge of this procedure. You need to be the communicator. A committment to this and a strength of character are also important. You may feel like you are on your own.

After care is difficult to describe. There is no option for group support. I had luck in getting through to other nurses when his assistant was not there, and enjoyed more compassion from them. I had to be brave. I take good care of myself, but am learning that I deserve to have my questions answered as I'm sure I'm paying dearly for this too.(I pay 10% of the bill) No one ever called me after I got home to check on me. This is a huge lifestyle change and it can be frightening.

No structured aftercare. A return visit 2 weeks after you go home.

Risks were not discussed to my recollection, but I knew some of them from having researched them my self. Paper work was provided that spelled out the risks however.
My follow-up visit was very pleasant and all of my questions were answered. I had lost 22lbs.
These are just my own experiences and opinions and may in no way be what you experience. I am reccommending Dr. Vierra to my friends at this point. I have no knowledge of what others have experienced, however. I like to keep in mind that half of the experience is due to my own feelings.
On my first visit I was very fragile and also worried having been turned down by my insurance carrier previously.

I had my first appointment with Dr. Vierra on
11/16/99. I met with his nurse first, Michelle. She is extremely friendly and very comforting. She did her best to make me feel comfortable and to give me some insight on the doctor. She answered alot of my questions and was just overall a really sweet person. When I met Dr. Vierra I was very at ease right away. He was straight forward and gave me the facts regarding the surgery itself, what he felt I needed to do prior to, He told me good and bad , positive and the negative and what to expect that was reasonable versus thinking a miracle happens the day after surgery. He told me that I would have to be very committed and that my motivation and willingness to cooperate post surgery would be the key to my weight loss success. I really liked his disposisiotn. Yes there are doctors who might be more " sweet" so to speak, but I found Dr. Vierra to be extremely knowledgeable of the procedure and what it entailed. He advised me he tries to perform Lap on every patient but to expect that an open gastric bypass might be the outcome. To my relief, he was able ro perform Lap. He was wonderful. He checked on me after the surgery and was just a really terrific doctor. I have recommended him to everyone I know interested in the surgery. I worked at Aetna prior to my surgery and now work at a medical group in Antioch where I work in the authorization department so I run across patients looking to be referred to surgeons who perform this type of surgery and again I am constantly putting his name out there. He is wonderful, his nurse was terrific I can still call her eith questions, and Stanford Hospital was amazing. The staff and everyone involved in my surgery made me feel very comfortable at a tike when my vulnerability could have taken over. I have nothing but great things to say. THANK YOU DR. VIERRA, YOU HAVE CHANGED MY LIFE. I AM A HAPPIER MORE ENERGETIC AND SELF CONFIDENT PERSON THANKS TO YOUR BRILLIANCE AND EXPERTISE.

Dr. Vierra seems to be a very concerned doctor and is very patient and informative. He took time to answer my questions even though he had a scheduled lecture to give. I have only met him once and for ony about a half hour so....what more can I say? :)

I have not met with Dr. Vierra yet. My appointment to meet with him is on October 17, 2000. 6 months from the date that I called and made the appointment. I was told by my insurance company Cigna that he requires his patients to loose 10 percent of their weight before the surgery. For me that would be 32 pounds. Of course in the last 4 months I have gained 15 instead. After reading other comments about him, I am worried he will turn me down for the surgery because I have not lost the weight. I will keep you updated.

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Update 10/19/00. I saw the doctor on Tuesday. Despite being sick with a cold, and very nervous, he made me feel comfortable and at ease. I went to the appointment with my boyfriend, and they had said that he was welcome in the room for the consultation with the doctor, which I thought was great. The doctor explained the surgery, and we talked about my personal situation for a while. He let both myself and my boyfriend ask all the questions we wanted. We spent about 40 minutes with him. He agreed to do the surgery. I was able to schedule a date right then. It is scheduled for November 27th. His nurse Michelle was the one to make the appointment. She is a very serious person. She is not extremely friendly, nor unfriendly. Just serious. My worries about the previous weight loss were unnecessary. He was in total shock that my insurance would have told me to loose weight prior to the consultation. He did have me sign an agreement that from the date of the consultation until the surgery that I would limit my daily intake to 1,000 calories with 60 grams of protein. And exercise 30 minutes every day. To ensure quick recovery after the surgery. And if there is no weight loss, or a gain, then the surgery will be postponed. I will keep you updated on my future visits.

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Update 1/12/01 - Well, I had to reschedule my surgery due to restuctering at work. I am now scheduled for 1/31/01. I have lost an additional 10 pounds since I saw the doctor on Oct. 15th. I am trying to diet and I am walking 30 minutes almost every day. I had a question about if I could take motrin before the surgery, and left a message for Michelle. She called me back right away with an answer. I have an appt on Jan. 24th. I will let you know how that goes.

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Update 1/26/01 - I had my anestehia appointment on 1/24/01. I met with Michelle first. She was great. She filled us in on everything that would happen though the entire surgery process from the day going in, though checking out. She answered all of our questions. She was extremely informative, and helpfull. The anesteshia person was great too. She let me know exactly what would happen the day of the surgery from her end. And put my mind at ease by answering a lot of questions that I had reqarding having tubes, and masks to help me breath, which she said I would not need. This day was great. Now, just one more week till the big day.

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Update 2/4/01. I had the surgery on Wednesday 1/31 and was released on 2/2/01. The procedure went well. The doctor came and saw me everyday. The first day he just came in, took my pulse, said "perfect" and left. The second day he came in at night, and said "if all goes well at breakfast tomorrow, you will be out of here after breakfast". And the 3rd day he came in and said "you don't look like you just had surgery". He is a man of few words, but he did an awesome job on my surgery! I have a follow up appt on 2/15/01.

The first thing I'd like to say is that it took 5 months to get an appointment to see him, which means he's very busy. Of course this nearly drove me crazy. I met with him on 11/21/00. I found him to be very informative, the information that is mailed to your home prior to your appointment answers most questions, and like most of us, we've already done the research. He did go over risks and expectations. I had heard from his nurse that he wants a 10% weight loss prior to surgery, so when I went in for my nutrtional evaluation, I stopped by to be weighed so I could get started. I had lost 6 lbs prior to our meeting. although, Michelle seems "unfriendly" especially over the phone, she was very nice in person. They were both supportive and answered all my questions. My surgery date is scheduled for 1/22/01. I can't wait. As an RN myself, I know the reasoning behind the 10% requirement--first it shows you're serious and will follow the program post operatively, by exercising prior and losing some weight, you are helping yourself in your recovery and decreasing your chance of problems with anesthesia. Remember he's helping us, he doesn't have a magic wand.

He was fantastic!!!! Very knowledgable. My husband
and 10 year old daughter were in on the
consultation also. He made a point to involve
both of them. He always looked me straight in the
eye with each and every word he said. He also
gave my straight to the point answers.
I have heard that he doesn't have much of a
bedside humor, but that is okay. He seamed
just very centered on business. Great man.
His nurse Michelle was extremly nice. I think
he and his staff are great!

I've just been approved for a consultation with him. I will update as I go. I have written him on e-mail and he has answered me both times. He seems very nice so far. Just for him to take the time to write me back means a great deal to me. I think I'm going to like him. We'll know more after my appointment. He seems to have a sense of humor and I like that in a person. My impression of him through e-mail only so far is that he is very professional and he does care about people. That's very important to me as well.
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Well I had my consultation with Dr. Vierra and everything I felt before I met him was entirely correct. He is a very nice man but very professional (which is a must) but he does have a wonderful bedside manner. He's to the point because he is such a busy doctor. I am a very bottom line type of person but I'm friendly about it, he seems to me to be somewhat the same way. Let's cut to the chase and get on with it. I think he will be a wonderful surgeon and I look forward to getting to work with him. He is picky about who he will approve for surgery and that may have something to do with the negativity in previous entries from different people. I don't know that I'm just wondering if that could be the case. If I was a surgeon I would have do what I thought was the best as well. If he had said he didn't think I was a good candidate I would have made a decision at that point and either did more research and ask him what I needed to do to become a candidate or go over my options a few more times. I am thrilled that he decided I was a candidate for sure. Now all I have to have is that little yellow paper saying "YOU HAVE BEEN APPROVED BY PACIFICARE TO HAVE YOUR SURGERY" I'm surly looking forward to seeing that. Pray for me ok? His office was very clean but busy busy busy. Staff was professional. I liked his directness the best I think. I think he's fair. Aftercare is everything. If I don't work with the knowledge he has given me I will not succeed and that my friends is the bottom line. His aftercare program is structured. If you live in the Palo Alto or surrounding areas they do have support groups. It is my decision whether to use them or not. I have a lot of support here in Santa Cruz. Risk of surgery were not talked about a lot but it was definitely in the information that was sent to me. They don't try to hide them at all, they are very open about the risk. Rating him seems odd just after one meeting but on a scale from 1-10 he'd be pushing that 10 really hard. So either I am a very good judge of character (which Ihave been known to be) or I've been snowed. I don't think so. That's enough writing about Dr. Vierra. I don't want his head to get too big if he reads this. Just kidding. Bye for now. Terri

After Surgery Update: Dr. Vierra had done a good job, I beleive. It is 13 days post op now and I seem to be healing good. I have lost (since surgery) 19 lbs. I didn't see Dr. Vierra while I was in the hospital, that I wasn't very happy about but I know he did come up one time and I was sleeping and he saw that I was asleep and just raised his hand for my husband not to wake me. I'd rather had been waken up. It's not like the nurses and nurses aides arn't waking you up every half hour anyway ya know. But I do think he did a good job and for that I am very grateful. He just should have made more attempts to see me while I was in the hospital. His staff that he worked with in the operating room did come by each day to check on me and they were very nice. I enjoyed all of them. Great folks! If this surgery continues to work out as well as it has I would still rate Dr. Vierra at a high 9 make no mistake about that. I believe he did a good job. Thanks Doc. Terri

I went back for my follow up visit and Michelle asked me a lot of questions more like a survey for her records or whatever. Then Dr. Vierra came in and he started asking Michelle questions like. How is she doing? What has she been eating and has she been having any problems with what she's been eating? HELLO!!! I'm right here. I just couldn't beleive that he was talking to her and not me. Like I wasn't even inthe room. Now I know what people meant by his bedside manner. He could definitely take some classes. But I do still think he did a good job (or whoever) did a good job. There were some interns inthere and they told me that they did some of the incisions. Who cares, it came out good. I am feeling great and I'll not ever be sorry I had it done. Dr. Vierra got the job done. As long as you don't want any comfort or caring, he will do a good job. Because he cares about his reputation and his job statistics, not you. But I'm fine with that. Thanks

My first meeting with Dr. Vierra was on 3/6/01 and I was very nervous to meet him. I had read some unpleasant things about him and I'm glad that the things I read didn't scare me off. I really enjoyed meeting the doctor and his nurse, Michelle. One thing that left me incredibly impressed was the emphasis given to starting this process NOW. When I heard that Dr. Vierra required weight loss before surgery I was a little put off. I started living a healthier lifestyle before I went in for my consultation. Now that I've lost about 20 pounds and I'm walking daily I feel great about myself and know that I will be more prepared for surgery - both physically and mentally. This surgery is a BIG deal. From what I remember, Dr. Vierra emphasized aftercare and I have been actively seeing the Psychiatrist (Dr. Apple) that I was originally referred to for my pre-op eval. Dr. Apple has been a big help and told me about the N. Cal. weight loss surgery support group. I have attended that for the last 2 months. Overall I would rate Dr. Vierra a 9. Both my husband and I were really impressed with him - he's a straight shooter and doesn't candy coat. I would say that surgical competence is most important for me. I am looking for a great surgeon, not a best friend. Bedside manner is nice but at the end of the day won't save your life. I also found Dr. Vierra to be very kind and warm. I'm very pleased that he will be performing my surgery.

6/12/01 Update - I haven't posted in awhile...My surgery went great and I feel sinfully good! Dr. Vierra has been wonderful and I only have wonderful things to say about him. I was completely satisfied with every aspect of my surgery. I am almost 2 months post-op and have lost 38 lbs since my surgery date on 4/16 for a total of 62 lbs. My life is already beginning to change.

My first impression of Dr. Vierra was that he was difficult to talk to but, in fairness I was very nervous and also had difficulty explaining myself. I did not see him again after my initial consultation until the morning of my surgery. After surgery, his visits in the hospital were very brief, but I did get my questions answered. My hospital is a teaching hospital so his residents would come in a little more often. His office staff is good although at first I felt like WLS was not a high priority in their eyes. He limits his practice to only 2 per week, but has performed many surgeries. The hospital nurse who did my pre-admitting said he is one of the best in lap. surgeries of the abdomen in this area. I feel he is an excellent surgeon and am extremely happy with the results of my surgery. At my first follow-up appointment, Dr. Vierra finally sat down with me and answered all my questions carefully and made me feel much more relaxed. I believe his ability as a surgeon is far more important than his bedside manner. I think you just have to insist he spend some time with you. I did not communicate that very well in the beginning.
Regarding after care, I received information on what to eat (suggestions), but there was not a lot of information. I would say I have received as much or more from this site. I do feel I can call his office for any questions I have. Overall, I would recommend him especially for lap surgery.