Richard Tillquist Bariatric Surgeon MD

I met with Dr. Tillquist May 14, 02. My original appointment was for June 18, 02. Eileen called and said she had a cancellation, so of course I said yes! Dr. Tillquist is a very nice man. Seems to me he has Excellent bed-side manner. very factual. Asked several times if my husband and I had any further questions. When I got there and I paid my co-pay $10.00(Cigna HMO) then I went back and got weighed(Yikes!) and then waited for Dr. T. My husband and I went back to a little room and he told me of the process and recovery. We then went over to Gini who scheduled my surgery for July 15! I am counting the days:) Now, I just sit back and wait for the approval call from Eileen!

July 19. 2002. 4 days post op, Dr. T was wonderful! Wonderful bedside manner. I am glad I chose him.

I am postop and now at my goal weight, 128 lbs and size 8. Dr. Tillquist is a competent surgeon and very nice. I cannot say the same for every member of his staff. This is what happened to me; My experience is mine, yours may hopefuly be better.

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In Oct 2001 I had laparoscopic roux-n-y gastric bypass surgery at Swedish Hospital. I gave the hospital a list of my meds (you can't bring in your own from home) and the doses, but they never gave me any of them while I was in hospital !!!! Consequently my BP went way up. And without my HRT, had to deal with hot flashes/cramps, in addition to the surgical pain. Nurses at this hospital are understaffed, so plan on a family member being there for you. Really.

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There are certain postop. pain meds I don't tolerate. I told Dr. T what WOULD work for me. Instead he gave me something that made me sick. He finally gave me what I'd TOLD him had worked for me at a prior surgery, but only after I was made sick as a dog on the stuff I asked NOT be given to me.


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By 8 weeks after my surgery, the new opening between my stomach and intestines scarred virtually completely shut. I vomited everything I ate for 27 days in a row !!! Toward the end, even water came back up. Despite many phone calls to Dr. Tillquist's office, I didn't hear from him. I got to leave messages for one of his nurses instead. When I called the nurse, it was often 24-48 hours before I was called back. Depending on which nurse it was, I was told: "Try eliminating dairy". "You must be eating too fast", "Go back to just liquids", etc.

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I finally got so weak and dehydrated that I passed out, landing on my face on my (fortunately carpeted) living room floor. Drove myself to the hospital. By then I was 12 POUNDS dehydrated.

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An upper GI showed I was scarred nearly completely shut. Because this wasn't caught by Dr. T's office soon enough, it was too late to do a balloon dilatation. This is where they thread a balloon down your throat in the strictured area, then inflate the balooon and stretch the scarring out. The GI surgeon at the hospital tried to do this and could not; he said it was too late. If the nurses had provided good postop care, this WOULD have been caught in time and that dilation procedure likely would have succeeded.

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Instead, I got to have a SECOND operation just eight (8) weeks after the first, which could absolutely have been avoided !!! It was just as painful to go through a second operation and another 5-6 day hospital stay. Even so, I made no fuss about this at the time, trying to be a "good patient". My husband was very angry about the care I received that caused me to have a second surgery unnecessarily.

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Fortunately I have been well since then.
Here's my impression of follow-up care I got through Dr. Tillquist's office. They tell you they have this great one year follow-up plan? Here's what I got. I made appts, then waited for a half hour or more in the exam room before Dr. T saw me. The nurse weighed me first. Then he asked "Any problems?" If the answer is "No", he's gone. Maybe 3 minutes with him tops. No examination, after a long wait. And believe me, they charge plenty for this "office visit".

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Here's where it got strange. I lost my job after 16 years, due to being replaced by a computer program. I called the office and told Eileen that I'd lost my job and was flat broke, and still looking for another job. Now by this time their office had collected about $30,000 (THIRTY THOUSAND DOLLARS) from my insurance company for my TWO surgeries, plus approximately another $80,000 (EIGHTY THOUSAND DOLLARS) for the SIX surgery patient referrals I'd sent to them !!! So, I asked Eileen if they could write off whatever balance was left over after my insurance company paid for my next office visit? She said, "Yes! I'm doing it now in the computer." Based on this, I went to that next appointment.

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I waited 40 mins in the exam room for Dr. T, he breezed in, 3 minutes max, again no exam,
and he left. He's very personable and nice, but this office seems to me to be all about the money. Next I got a bill for $20 balance after my insurance company had paid for most of this expensive office visit. I called Eileen and told her their office had billed me for the remaining $20 and reminded her of the agreement that she'd entered into her computer. She said she'd take care of it right away and I wouldn't be billed for it again. I believed her. Eileen is very nice and I have no problem with her, Gini or most of the other fine staff members there.

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However, I then got an unpleasant phone call from a creature called Diane/Diana in Dr. Tillquist's billing department. The sort of person who smirks, is condescending and rude to you? You know the type. Try to avoid this evil troll if you can. (Just my opinion...)

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She informed me in a nasty tone that that there was no way they were going to write off this $20, even though I had lost my job and made this agreement with Eileen. Now remember, this office was already about $110,000 (ONE HUNDRED TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS)ahead because of my TWO surgeries and SIX referrals to them who had surgery....

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I told Diana that they needed to honor the agreement made with me, not change it AFTER I'd already kept the appointment. It is the principle here, and I would not accept having been flat out lied to, on top of everything else I'd been put through already !!! Her response? Was to send me a cruddy form letter demanding immediate payment or face a collection agency for this whopping $20 balance. Incredible. My impression was and still is that she's a self-important, mean-spirited and vindictive woman who will go to great lengths to prove herself "right". I certainly didn't find an ounce of compassion in her. And her attitude was certainly unprofessional, in my estimation. That was the straw that broke the camel's back, as they say....my dealings with this awful creature. I was done.

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Well, you may say, $20 isn't much? No, I agree, it really isn't. But when you have no job for 4 months, that is a tankful of gas for me....or a sack of groceries. Money is very tight now, and in the depressed job market here, I'm not finding work in my field. I job-hunt every week. Ethically, a deal is a deal, not to be changed by one side after the fact. It was just shoddy.

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I really feel that I deserved to be treated better by this office. I am currently sending them $3 a month until this $20 balance is paid off, because that is all I can scrape up just now. Beware anything this office tells you - get it in writing. Because, bottom line, my experience has been that this office is less about patient care than it is ALL ABOUT THE MONEY, ALL THE TIME.

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I now see my internist twice a year for my follow-up care. There, at least when I pay for an office visit I am seen promptly, actually examined, have lab work done. I feel that I am now treated like a valued patient, not merely like a cash cow.

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Oh, by the way. I asked Dr. Tillquist once about some of the negative reviews I saw here on this website about his office? He brushed it off, making it sound like some people are just nuts or unreasonable. Well, everyone who knows me says I am the MOST laid-back, easy to get along with person they know. I didn't even raise a fuss when their incompetence caused me to have a second operation that could have been avoided !!! But when they started adding insult to injury, yeah, I finally got the picture of what they are about. Money......Period.

Good luck to you, and I hope your own subjective impressions of your surgical and postop care experience are more positive than mine. Lisa Dobson

I called the Dr. office the other day and the woman I talked to was very nice. I haven't had a PCP really since 1993 so I asked the receptionist if she could refer me to a PCP that Dr. Tillquist trusted. She gave me four to choose from and I went with Dr. Jennifer Arnold all the way down in Greenwood Village. So far I am impressed by the courtesy I have received. Dr. Tillquest's office offered to mail me a packet of information to get turned in, said it would be 8 weeks untilI get me pre-surgery appointment and then the surgery would follow in another 6-8 weeks. I will update more after I get my packet. *Shelly*
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I met Dr. T today and here is what I thought of him....
He came in, we shook hands, and he asked what questions I had. So without delay I asked him what the chances were for a complication and then what did he consider a complication. Well that opened the floodgate for answers. He was extremely thorough in complications and what could happen and then he even went into the major complications two of his patients had had. Both were leakages, on required an open surgery and the other just was drained and was fine. Then came the hard question – has he had any deaths. His answer was yes – two – and one was yesterday. However these deaths were not directly related to the surgery and there is a good chance they would have died regardless. Both died of Pulmonary Embolism (blood clot in the lung). So he was very frank about that and went into great detail about these women and their situations. Although it was a huge warning sign – the compassion he used when talking about what happened to all of these people was very touching and I could tell that he was feeling pretty bad about the woman that just passed. We talked for another 45 minutes – he was great, very relaxed, smiley, friendly, down to earth, and open with me. I was very appreciative of that. I really Liked Dr. T and am glad I chose him. I hope you will be too.

I've only met with Dr. Tillquist one time so far. I have a pre-op physical with him on 7/16/02. I plan on making a list of things I want to go over with him at that time. My first impression of him was very positive. He seemed responsive. His office staff appears to be very professional and kind. That is all I have to say for now, I'll update when I have a better handle and more experience with both him and his staff.

I really liked him. He was quiet and sympathetic as well as understanding. The staff understood the plight of the obese and were very caring in administering the required care to me. Future patients should know he is very nice. He does stress that you come back in every month. He does not pound this into your head however. If you are doing this, you should already know how much the aftercare is needed. His aftercare program is for one year. The risks were addressed matter of factly....I give him 100% He has not lost a patient to date.

Surgical competence is the best...You do not want someone operating on you who does not know what they are doing....for it could and would kill you. Bedside manner is necessary too.. For me,,,if I dont like someone..I dont want them touching me or dealing with me on any level let alone sensitive issues and this is such an issue...If you can get the combination of competence and wonderful bedside manner,,,,all the better going into this life changing event

I had to wait a couple of months before my first appointment, but only so that Dr. Tillquist would be a Network Provider for my insurance company and my insurance would cover the visit. Otherwise I would have been in sooner.
Since I live over 4 hours away, his office staff has been wonderful in working with me via the telephone and mailing my packet out quickly.
My husband went with me to my first visit as I was so nervous. But Dr. Tillquist put us both at ease within the first few minutes and answered all my questions, even the ones I forgot. I beleive he helped my husband be more comfortable with the surgery too by answering his questions in a straight forward manner.
My next visit is in a couple of weeks and I'm much more relaxed about going to it.

I met Dr. Tillquist on May 21st and was pleasantly suprised at how friendly and thorough he was. The staff was incredible, and I feel very fortunate to be working with them all.
I have not met with them since my initial visit, and probably will not until a few days before my surgery. I am still waiting on insurance approval, but they tell me it should all be approved no problem. I am crossing my fingers.
We did not really discuss the aftercare program as I told Dr. Tillquist that I have been researching this for a year or so now, so did not have a whole lot of questions for him.

Dr. Tillquist was everything I expected him to be: very professional, knowledgable, but especially friendly, understanding, and patient. He explained everything in an easy-to-understand manner, he let me ask questions and he answered them completely, and he made me feel safe.

His office staff were all very friendly, efficient, and they put me at ease right away. Very different from my primary care physician's office!

Professional. Not triple booked like Dr. Snyder's office. If I am the only one in office for my 45min. consult, I bet I'll be the only patient on the Dr.'s mind for my 3 hr surgery. I am a bit nervous about there not being 2 surgeons in the OR during my lap, but after some questioning, I don't think Richard will die of a heart attack on me. If he does, there are other surgeons near by. He is human, didn't have a privlaged childhood before med school, I am totally confident in him. He is also completely understanding about blood-free surgeries. Last, but not least, any ex-ER doc has plenty of experience for me!***** DR. REVIEW POST SURGERY*********
Man! Dr. Tillquist is the best! Anyone would be fortunate to get a surgery date with him. As for Porter Hospital . . . The patient advocacy department let me down considerably. All in all, staff did their best and I admire them for that.

Consultation Scheduled for April 2,02. I have many questions and concrens. I have not told my family yet, I am afraid fo what they will say.

Dr. Tillquist is a very quiet person, he will answer any of your questions (no matter how many you bombard him with at once). However he does not really offer much, not a real conversationalist, but a great person alltogether.