Jefferson Health System Hospital
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Just to clarify my previous post, Dr. Neff did not perform her bariatric surgery 10 years prior. It was done in NYC.
A few years ago my wife was admitted to Virtua Hospital through the ER with severe abdominal pain. After two days they could not figure out the cause and began to imply that she was faking it to get narcotic pain meds! I was certain that it had to be related to her bariatric surgery performed 10 years earlier but no one would listen to me! I called Dr. Neff who had performed her emergency gall bladder surgery two years before at Kennedy Hospital in Washington Township and I knew that he had surgical privileges at Virtua. He came in to see her after spending a long day in surgery at Kennedy Cherry Hill. He IMMEDIATELY diagnosed her problem (twisted bowel) and had her in the operating room after 9:00 p.m. and operated past midnight to untwist it. Of course he was in again to see her early the next morning. He explained that the bowel was starved for oxygen and if several more hours had passed she would have had to have her bowel removed and very likely would have died. I will be forever grateful to Dr. Neff for saving her life!
Dr. Marc Neff has setup such a complete process, you cannot go wrong. His practice starts with education, pros/cons, what to expect, what would expected from you to be successful. Then it visits with the nutritionist leaving with tons of information and steps to start taking. items to start picking up when on sale to small changes to start getting used to now rather than all changes starting at once. Of course all the pre-Op tests to ensure you're ready for surgery. Surgery was just as expected. Then the follow up to continue to educate, assist, motivate and provide answers. Its a great practice with a full staff of great people wanting to help you. one other thing that I found extremely helpful was the office provides an unique set of instructions based on your insurance company for you to follow to help them ensure your insurance company will approve your procedure.
Well Done Dr. Neff
2 people found this helpful
I'm not sure if I can offer a biased review, I'm a Kennedy employee. The nursing staff was great, and I'm saying this as a nurse. It is a teaching hospital so expect to be examined 5 times before you actually meet with the attending who doesn't examine you (how else will they learn). Overall I had a great experience.
It was hard to rate my experience with stars because there is a wide range of nursing care quality there from very poor to excellent. About 75% of the staff I encountered were very caring and professional but overworked. However, my room was behind the nurses station, and I heard many unprofessional conversations. I also received repeated conflicting information for many things such as how often to use the incentive spirometer (anywhere from 6 times a day to 10 times an hour - big difference), how much I should be drinking, and what to expect from a test.
They also are proud of their walking program and I wish I had understood what that meant. They want you up and walking right away. I was fine with that because I understood the importance; however, they are extreme about it. The first night, I had a very bad reaction to anesthesia and wasn't able to walk. I wanted to do what they recommended. I repeatedly tried to walk but ended up falling on the floor dry heaving. I was absolutely made to feel lazy and was told that I wasn't embracing my new healthy lifestyle about 18 hours after my surgery.
I started to walk hourly throughout the day and even in the middle of the night when I was awake (1am and 4am). I was told it wasn't enough. Regrettably, I took myself off of my pain medication intentionally because I wasn't measuring up to the walking expectations and I had difficulty with dizziness while walking on the medication. Finally, when I asked what specifically the walking expectations were, I was told that you are expected to walk continuously unless you have a good reason not to; and sleep was not a reason.
There LITERALLY is a competition to see how much they can get you to walk and it has been written about as a point of pride online. My surgical experience was individual and shouldn't have been part of a competition.
Of course, this is only my experience. Other people may have more success. If I hadn't had any problems with the anesthesia and pain medications and had been able to keep up with the walking expectations, I'm sure my stay would have felt very different. I think the expectations were unreasonable though and I wasn't handled as an individual. My husband wants to have the surgery too. It's a shame. We liked the doctor but will never go back to the hospital.
I had a RNY gastric performed by Dr. Neff in Aug. of 2008. I have begun having horrible twisting pains in my intestinal area and I called Dr. Neff's office because I believed since he performed my surgery he would be familiar with any symptoms like this. I was passed to 2 people, and basically brushed off. I was told to go to my primary physician. They didn't even say they would leave a message for Dr. Neff to call me. I don't see what a primary physician can do for something that in all probability is related to my bypass surgery. I am highly disappointed in the office and Dr. Neff. This is my opinion. I have no idea what others may have experienced.
0 of 1 people found this helpful
Dr Neff and his team want your experience to be the BEST. The nurses on the floor we excellent and well trained to help a bariatric patient. My personal recommendation is to only use Kennedy from this point forward!!!
i consider myself very lucky for finding kennedy health system and Dr Balsama to do my vertical sleeve surgery. I, originally coming from a large city, felt that if i ever did decide to do something about my weight problem i would have to travel into philadelphia to get the patient care and expertise that i wanted and needed. I went to many seminars and many different dr's, but i never felt comfortable enough to make the "biggest decision" of my life. That all changed the day i walked into Dr Balsama's office. I not only felt comfortable with the Dr and his vast knowledge, but when i heard about the whole kennedy program, it became a " no brainer". That was 14 months ago and close to 200 lbs. The kennedy program is truly unsurpassed. everyone from the Dr's to the bariatric coordinator, to the nutritionists, and the entire nursing staff is there for us 24/7, for as long as we need them. i still attend every support group that is held each month. I get so much out of them, and i try to give back to all those who are thinking about having the surgery. I thank god that i did not go to the "big city" to have my surgery, i truly believe in my heart that i would not have done as well as i have without the Kennedy Group. Please do not hesitate to use kenndy healthsystem for your bariatric needs, you will not regret it!!'