Richard Tillquist Bariatric Surgeon MD

From the first time I met him I realized he was a very knowledgible doctor. His Nurse Practitioner CJ went over the entire procedure with the utmost knowledge also. I had however been exploring this for some time-so i felt i understood the procedure it self. Dr. T answered all my questions. He has performed 2,000 proceures in the past 15 years and that is just the RNY procedure. His pre-op and post op program is very intense. No doubt this is one of the reasons he has acquired the Center Of Excellence determination. His office gal Eileen is nice however I think she is worked to the bone and may not be able to devote as much time to each case that it may need.

Dr. Tillquist came highly recommended to me.rnI did not meet him until the morning of my surgery, as soon as he walked in the room I knew he was going to be great.rnAll of his office staff were very suportive and helpful.rnI live like 300 miles away from where I had surgery.rnHe was very good at telling me everything and asking me questions and answere any questions that I asked him.rnI was scheduled for the lap RNY, with 5 small incisions, he ended up and had to do one more small insicion because my liver was enlarged from being so obese so long, I was very impressed with that because usually you have to be opened up if that happens, he was great.rnA friend of mine had the same surgery earlier this spring by a different Dr. and when I seen her incisions they were really bruised all around each one of them, mine were nice and clean cut and not one bruise.rnI give Dr. Tillquist the highest rating possible.rn

my first impression of dr. tillquist was good he answered all my questions and seemed like he knew what he was doing . he put me at ease about the surgery . after the surgery however his nurse answered all my questions and saw me at my check ups . but she came to my area instead of me going to denver to see them . so that helped a great deal. over all i am very pleased with my surgery . my co-morbids are all gone . i feel so good. i am glad i did it

Dr. Tilquist has saved my life twice. Once with Gastric Bypass and once when a GI doctor punctured my esophagus. He is generous and caring and always has time for me. I would never go to any other doctor.




I liked Dr. Tilquist very much. He was my 2nd surgeon, I had seen one in the Springs first and was very comfortable with him. So, I was very nervous about how I would feel about Dr. Tilquist. I am very happy with him. The consultation was great and I am confident in his abilities. Aftercare is huge to him. You have to go back once a month for a full year to see him. I appreciate that.

I really liked Dr. Tillquist; however, I was sent to their office at the recommendation of my actual bariatric surgeon, Frank Chae. Dr. Chae was not contracted with AETNA and referred me to them if I did not want to use my out of network benefits. I was desperate to keep the process moving so I went to Dr. Tillquist. What a nightmare! I have left message after message, sent faxes and I get no reply. I have to keep calling until I can finally reach someone to discuss the progress of my submission. I waited over 4 weeks for my paperwork to be submitted to insurance because there were "other people ahead of me" who were already patients of Dr. Tillquist. I have been made to feel that I am not important at all and now after being denied, I really wonder if all of my paperwork was submitted. I am transferring back to Dr. Chae and will gladly use my out of network benefits. I have spent 3 years preparing for an approval and have just been pushed off as if I am not important. It is very frustrating considering you are putting your whole decision in the hands of this doctor and when you spend all this money and time investing in something you know is best for you and you dont get the response you would like, go to another surgeon and keep pushing. Eventually, you will get an approval, and that is what I am doing. I feel that I am a number and not a person and when it comes to surgery, that is not the best thing! I will not refer anyone to their office in the future.

Dr. Tillquist and his staff have been overall great. Initially, waiting for call backs and follow-up seemed to drag (three weeks from consult to first call), but once the initial approval from my insurance came in, all went pretty quickly.
Dr. Tillquist is a very personable, soft-spoken man who will answer any and all questions you have with direct, straight-forward answers. He has many, many patients, but never makes you feel rushed or as though your questions (I had many) are bothersome.
C.J., the PA was equally wonderful. She also answers all of my questions, asking repeatedly "are you sure you don't have any more". Very personable and what immediately impressed me with her was the fact that she said almost as soon as she met me, "Don't let anyone tell you that you took the easy way out". I almost cried, because I had heard that one.
I would recommend this office to anyone.

GREAT

Dr. Tillquist and his staff of C.J. and Eileen have made this journey so easy. He is available to answer any questions, he calmed me before surgery and has been supportive and informative since our first visit. Thanks to him and his staff and God bless!

Dr. Tillquist was very pleasant to speak with. You can tell he enjoys what he does. That helps when you are looking for a surgeon. His office staff is alway pleasant to talk to. Eileen was helpful in getting my insurance approved. I have Aetna insurance and they require you go on a 6 month supervised weight loss plan before they will even consider you for surgery. I was nice that Eileen knew this a the time I scheduled my first visit with Dr. Tilquist. This gave me time to think about whether or not the surgery was the right thing for me.

I think that Dr. Tillquist is an absolutely brilliant surgeon. He is very kind and respectful. He has a wonderful bedside manner and is very honest with you. He stresses aftercare and will only perform the surgery if you agree to see him once a month for the first year out from surgery. Dr. Tillquist is the only surgeon in the metro area that accepts medicaid and the most wonderful part about it is that he doesn't look down on you if you do have medicaid. He has a very nice and calm demeanor. The staff at Swedish hospital, where he performs all of his surgeries, is absolutely wonderful. They are very caring and sensitive. I feel that both his surgical competance and bedside manner were wonderful.