Help! Looking for a Lap Band Surgen in S. California

Hi, I have been looking up surgeons like crazy and I need help!  I would like someone close to me...I live in Hacienda Heights (Southern Ca). This will be out of pocket so I am also looking for a good price. Any suggestions on surgeons and prices would sincerely be appreciated. Thank you.

You might check out Dr. David Suh, of Crown Surgery in Corona, Ca.  He does RNY, Realize band, and just began doing the sleeve surgery.  I don't know about his price. BUT, you can always ask about a cash discount, since you are self paying for the surgery. His office is a couple of miles from I15 and the 91 freeway.  www.crownsurgery.com is the office web site. He also put on a specific support group for Realize band patients every month too, and 4 support groups for RNY, or any wt loss support.  I'd opt for a surgeon with a lot of experience versus a surgeon that is cheap. DAVE 

HI...I am a self-pay Lap Band patient.  I went with Dr. Carson Liu.  He is currently in West LA, near UCLA.  He is moving his office to Santa Monica in the next couple of months.  He holds a clinic in Tustin once a month.  He is great and experienced.  What I like about him is he truely cares about his patients.  You can check him out on OH or his website. 

For further info, you can send me a private message.

Terri

Try Troy Lamar and 3 other surgeons in that Bariatric practice who perform it at Arcadia Methodist or Huntington in Pasadena. Both hospitals are Bariatric Centers of Excellence and they give discounts to self-pays. 626.445-0600. They also don't discourage lap band surgery or push RNY on you like some surgeons like USC.They do it as an outpatient surgery so your cost weill be less. Whomever you go with, be sure to get a package that includes all aftercare and fills for 1-2 years and also negotiate a discount with the hospital and anesthesiologist.

Whatever you do, don't use 1800get thin. You'll be sorry. private email if you want more info.

Hi Janet,

 I am curious about 1-800-get thin. I see it all over the place and hear it on the radio, every day all day. I have not called them. I figured it would be a cattle call. I want to be treated well, not just a number. Plus it is alot of money. Do you happen to know if they guarantee the placement of the lap band? In other words if the surgeon does not place it properly will he fix it at his expense? I have to finance this surgery and can't afford it to go wrong. Thank you Janet for all of your help. One more quick question, did you get your surgery from Troy Lamar? LMK. Thanks!

Carlene

Several people have died having their lapband surgery theough 1800. The owners mdical licenses are suspended. Read this link to LATimes article:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2010/04/michael-hiltzik-a-death-and-the-lapband.html

Several people on the lap band forum  said that they were treated like cattle there and were told their insurance would pay for it and it didn't. They were so frustrated with spending months doing the workup and surgery trusting it was covered and now have to pay it. Plus there is no followup care so they were very frustrated. I know your a self pay but do you really want to trust a clinic like that?

I had my lapband at Cedars-Sinai WLS program because that is where my insurance required me to go.  I wouldn't recommend Cedars now because my surgeon and 3 others recently left there and formed their own practice. Cedars bills for extra facilities charges for every office visit, lab, xray and their insurance billing has major problems. They only do fills under fluroscopy and bill my insurance $4500 each time which is absurd. I didn't have to pay that much (about $300 out of pocket) but I now go to the Dr who banded me who does it for $150 in his office. But he does his surgeries at Cedars so as a self pay, it would cost you too much to use him.

As far as guaranteeing placement of the band, you want to go to a surgeon who specializes in Bariatric surgeries, has done 250+ lapband surgeries over several years so improper placement will not be an issue. Did they do a fellowship with a Bariatric practice after medical school. Trust your gut.  As I said previously, as a self-pay,  you want to get a prepaid 2 year package that covers all surgeon fees-surgery, followup visits, fills, and followup surgeries if there's a complication. But it doesn't include the hospital or anesthesiologist and lab costs. But no surgeon is going to guarantee your band won't slip at some point post-op because what you do (improper eating, getting too many fills and being too tight) can cause band slippage and that is not within the control of the surgeon. You can also go online to the CA Medical licensing Board and check out the malpractice claims of any Dr who is licensed and practices in CA.

I live in Arcadia and go to the support group at Methodist run by the Nutritionist and social Worker from LaMar's group and know 20+people who had their surgery done through that practice. I've heard good things about all 3 of the surgeons in that group.  Check the Methodist Hospital website for seminar info and go to the info seminar. Its free and the first step in the process. Also every 4th Monday eve is the lapband support group that is open to anyone and you'll get a good idea of what its like post-op. Huntinton hospital in Pasadena also is a COE and I actually wanted to have my surgery done there but my insurance wasn't contracted with them. Check out Huntington's Bariatric website too.

You get the best information and feedback by talking to people about their experience and followup care which is so critical for lapbanders. I went to several seminars which is the first step in the process to get a feel for the doctors, and then I followed up by talking to patients at support groups who had their surgery there.

My recommendations-I would only go to a surgeon who does it at a COE hospital, and who will do fills in the office or by fluroscopy if needed at a hospital. Fills in the office should only cost about $150 whi*****ludes the office visit. fills done under fluroscopy can cost several thousand dollars by the time the hospital, radiologist, Dr bill so as a self pay you want to avoid having to be required to get your fills done under fluroscopy. Confirm the followup care includes labs to make sure you stay healthy and there are Nutritionists and support groups available post surgery.

Finally, its very difficult to change Dr's post surgery.No surgeon will take on a patient who was banded by another Dr because of malpractice concerns. So you want to make sure your very comfortable with the Bariatric group you go with. That's why patients who are banded in Mexico have a hard time finding anyone who can do their fills or get followup care or what happens if there's a complication.

Most Bariatric practices give discounts for selfpays so be selective. You have choices. If you have any other questions, feel free to private email me.
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Thank you for all of your help. I really want this.