Who is best Dr in Atl area?

I am new here and would like to know who you all think the best DR in the area is. Im sure I'll get lots of different answers but Im ok with that. I want to make sure I do my homework. Is there any other place you can find out success rates of different Drs? Any information would be greatfull! Also what is the best way to get started with having the surgery? Thanks for your help!! G

Hi Ginger & Welcome You are probably going to get a lot of input on your surgeon question & rightfully so, there are some very good & qualified surgeons in our area. I personally used & highly recommend Dr. Champion in Marietta. If you check out his web site @ dr.champion.com you can get a lot of good info on him & his practice. He is very knowledgable & has performed a lot of RNYs which is something to take into consideration. He even assists in training of surgeons with the laproscopic technique. I had my surgery on 2/3/04 & my experience has been wonderful. I researched the procedure for almost 2 years before I made my final decision, and being a nurse I was very particular. The best part about his practice is the aftercare program. It is very detailed & comprehensive so you won't ever feel like you had your surgery & you are just floating out there alone with the huge life change. He is very involved & active with his patients and offers support group meetings both pre & post op, he pays for a personal trainer that holds weekly exercise groups for post op patients free of charge, & then he is always having extra "fun" activities like parties, health fairs, etc. so that patients can get together & share their experience. Dr. Champion is very professional & will not let you enter into your decision lightly, so make sure you are prepared. You are making an important first step here, there is a lot of wonderful info on this site alone & some great people that are always willing to help out if they can. Just be sure to do your homework, this isn't a quick fix & it if you want to be successful you have to be ready to change your life in more ways than one. There are a lot of resources online if you look up bariatric surgery or gastric bypass. Dr. Champion also has a great starter pack that you can get free of charge or obligation. I had my pack for a year before I made my first appt. Well, good luck with your journey. Let me know if there is anything I can help you with or questions I can answer. I am no expert, but I am learning as I go God Bless & I hope this was helpful. Angel 101 lb since surgery - total of 151 since preparing for surgery

Thanks for your reply!! I really appreciate it! I am very nervous and have so many questions. I have been thinking about it for a long time now but had a set back in the last two years as my mom had the surgery in AL and had alot of complications and resulted in her death in Nov of last year. It was a very tramatic experience for myself as well as the family. My mom was very sick going into it diebities, COPD ect and I know that is why she was unsuccessful! This weighs heavy on my mind but I am ready to look into it again as I know that she should have NEVER had this proceedure done. I will check into this Dr as he is very close to me and sounds like a good starting place. Can you call for the starter packet? or do you have to actually have an appt to recieve it? I am also interested in any support groups that may be available to sit in on. If you know of any please let me know. Im ready to LIVE life and ready for a change. Thank you again for your reply and may God bless! G

No offense, because I have only heard good things about Dr. Champion, but I actually read in a medical magazine that Dr. Duncan was the #1 surgeon in Georgia and #4 in the country. I read this almost two years ago, so it could have changed since. However, I love Dr. Duncan, he is the greatest, very experienced, and loves to crack silly jokes. I would recommend him to anyone!! Good luck on your journey and no matter which surgeon you choose...make sure that you feel comfortable with him or her! That's the most important factor!! Smooches, Chandra Lap RNY 6/22/04 297/270/135

What makes a surgeon #1? The amount of surgeries they do? IMO, that doesn't make a #1 doctor...there are PLENTY of GREAT surgeons in Atlanta. I have heard that going through Emory might not be the best idea since that is a teaching hospital and from what I heard, there are a lot of bariactric patients that end up in ICU there, more than average at least. Anyhoo, that's just what I heard so no flames.

The number of surgeries performed does not make a surgeon #1. That being said, numbers do help. Unfortunately, this surgery is a learning curve. As the number of surgeries increase the number of deaths and complication should decrease. Dr Champion is one of the finest surgeons in the Nation. He has performed almost 2000 surgeries. Unfortunately, his services aren't available to most b/c he charges $4500.00 upfront and he does not participate with any insurance companies. Therefore you are stuck paying out of network fees. If you have the $$ he is a good choice. Unfortunately he has no personality and a lot of his patients think he is just downright mean. But he has good surgical skills. Dr. Duncan has performed approx 1800 surgeries. He charges no upfront program fees and he does participate with most insurance companies. He is world renound. I wish this info was made more readily available to the public. He participates in FDA studies, boards, teaches and proctors other surgeons on WLS surgery. He specializes in laparoscopic surgery unlike some other Drs that learn inorder to do WLS. He taught and performed the first lap. gallbladder removal in Russia. He regularly is called upon to perform surgeries and teach in other Countries such as Japan, Russian, etc. He has had 3 deaths. All when his WLS numbers were under 250. He hasn't had a death since. He has a great personality as do most of the other Drs on his team. His office is the team approach and he does sponsor fellows that have graduated from medical school, internship and residents. They do no perform the surgery but are there to observe. Teaching hospitals do not increase the number of ICU patients. I think that is a matter of the integrity and skill of the surgeon. These are just two surgeons that I do know about. Good Luck with your research. Tonya

Thanks for your replys. Any and all information is welcome as I am in the start of my quest! Im sure you all have been here before. Any advice on where or what to do next is greatly appreciated! G

I have researched this for a long time. 2 doctors in the Atlanta area that name comes up the most often was Dr Duncan and Dr Champaign. I hope I spelled that correctly. I am sure that there are a lot of good Doctors and I wouldn't presume to ditch any of them I just advising of what my extensive research has found. I talked with a lot of patients from both doctors and with people in the medical field as well to get their opinion. Good luck with your journey. Hugs and Prayers, Theresa

I can't say enough about the facility at Emory Dunwoody Medical Center. They have a bariatric ward there and the facilities are brand new, the staff is very experienced with wls patients and I honestly have never had a better hospital experience than the one I had there. You know, you usually run into a nurse or two who just don't dig their jobs, but everyone on the EDMC staff was exceptional. I have heard from patients of Dr. Champion's that he does not prescribe B-12 injections for his post-ops. There is a controversy over B-12 supplements, but one truth is that B-12 deficiencies cause irreversible damage to organs. Because of this, and because our bodies have lost their ability to create B-12, the patients of other surgeons are given B-12. My surgeon was Dr. Paul Macik and he is considered one of the tops in his field by other surgeons in Northside Hospital and EMDC. You are smart to do a lot of investigations. Meet with the surgeons and ask them questions about everything. The B-12 issue is on everyone's mind at the support group meetings I attend once a month.

I can only speak highly of my doctor, Dr Dennis C Smith, Woodstock and he operates at Kennestone Hospital or Wellstar Windy Hill Hospital which both are wonderful. I had my surgery July 22 and the procedure was a walk in the park for me minor a little set back only due to him being so good in making sure there were no leakages, thehospital itself was nice, clean, all the staff was wondeful, I just truly cant say nothing but greatness. I have heard several things about other doctors good or bad in the Atlanta area but If i had to do this all over again and during my research and in speaking with other medical professionals, they all recommend including me Dr Dennis Smith.. Good Luck in your journey.. P.S. DO ALL YOUR RESEARCH AND HOMEWORK ON THE DOCTORS AND THAT WILL ASSURE YOU THE RIGHT CHOICE....I DID AND I AM GLAD I MADE THE CHOICE I MADE..