Stephen V. Hamn Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

I have not seen my surgeon yet, I do have an appt. on March 20, 2003, and will at that time do an up date.

Well...I made my appt. about a month ago... and I still have to wait until May 28th, 2003! I am very excited about meeting Dr. Hamm, as many people, friends, doctors, and family have told me good things about him! Of course, I am like most.....the wait seems so long! However, I am very committed to doing something about my weight and medical problems.... the wait, I hope will be well worth it!
I will keep you informed of the meet and everything else that follows! I know if most people are like me... it helps to hear from people who are going through these same processes!

I have not met with Dr. Hamn as of yet. I have a appointment scheduled for March 20, 2003. I made the appt. back the 1st of December 2002. A friend that had the wls/with Dr. Hamn is how I came to know him. I've tried to do as much research as I can on WLS. I have chosen the Adj. Lap-Band Surgery, I do not want anyother or more invasive surgery. I feel for me this is the best. The office has been nice so for, called Insurance Co., BC/BS to see is my plan covers this type surgery and at the time it does not, but hope by the time I get ready for surgery they will approve with the proper paper work and medical history.

My first visit was Dec. 11, 2002. My first impression: I thought he was a pleasant man, but to the point and honest about the risks of all WLS. The office staff is the best.

Dr Hamn was great. He was very forthright and told me what I needed to know. His staff works well with the patients and are quick to respond. All in all, I would recommend him to anytone that wants to avoid the bypass surgery like I did.

The only down side, to me, is that he is in Plano. For me, that's a long drive out to see him, but it is well worth it.

First impression- arrogant. Over time he warmed up. I do not really care about someones bedside manner as long as they are a good surgen. Office staff- At first terrible but became more personal the more I dealt with them. No aftercare program, but that is ok with me. I will rely on my PC doctor. Doctor Hamn is very straight forward.But I found it amazing how many people in his office for consult that had not done any type of research on WSL surgery.
I feel that it is the paients job to do as much research as possible and be prepared!

I highly respect Dr. Hamn. I believe he definitely knows what he is doing. He is very direct, impersonal, no fluff type surgeon! If you are sensitive, you may walk out with your feelings hurt at times. But, if I had to do it all over again, I'd use him. When I began calling and going to his office, I really felt that his staff's motto was "don't call us, we'll call you." This may be because they are very busy. After my surgery, it looked like he had made changes in his office -- for the better! I really can't complain because they all went above and beyond to help me get my surgery approved; therefore, they obviously know what they are doing and that's a tremendous help! P.S. Now don't expect to get more than 3 weeks off work for post-op -- it won't happen!!!!!

I will go for the consult/seminar Sept.25th.
Finally my consult got here! Dr. Hamn was very imformative about VBG, Lap banding and did talk some about RNY. (He does not believe that having RNY will increase a persons chances of success but that it DOES increase the risk involved with WLS.) He quoted studies and research findings. Before my consult I was convinced that the only way I would be successful was to have RNY. After meeting with Dr. Hamn I now believe that lap banding is the way to go. He answered all of my questions and those of my husband. I was not convinced that he trully understood what it is like being Super Obese - but who can if they don't have that problem. No aftercare program was mentioned except for the adjustments of the band at about 5 weeks and then again as needed to continue weight loss. I feel he is a competent surgeon. His office staff seemed very busy. I was not decided at the time of the consult as to which procedure I wanted and Dr. Hamn said to call back after I had time to discuss and decide. His office called me in about a week to see how I was coming along with that discision. I told them lap banding would be my preference. Now to get insurance approval!

2002-05-01 First Impressions: caring, concerned, concise, clear in all areas.

2002-06-19: Letter sent to Insurance - sure takes a long time, but they are backed up months for the surgery anyway. The hospital he uses is limiting the number of procedures they will allow -- lack of bed space??

2002-07-08: Insurance approved.

2002-08-06: I have my date. Office staff wants to use email to issue instructions.

2002-09-26: (post-op) He did a good job overall. He did not tell me untill just before surgery that he MIGHT need to use retention sutures (He gave me two of them) and that they could be quite unpleasant (they are). Not a great bedside manner - kind of difficult to find him due to his scheduling.

I FELT AS IF DR HAMN WAS THERE FOR ME AND HIS OFFICE STAFF IS GREAT. I KNOW THAT I AM IN GREAT HANDS WITH DR HAMN.