I am LIVID!!!!!!!!!!

soooooooo hubby and i have been doing alot of talking and ALOT of soul searching in regards to my WLS date of 07/10/09.

i feel and am afraid that it could be too soon after such a serious surgery as does hubby....and b/c of the absorption issues we are both wondering if RNY is not the safest bet for me, since part of my heart is still trying "to come back" and needs the protein to help that happen...

sooooooooo...yesterday i call Dr. jones' office to schedule a "sitdown" w/ her....the receptionist got REALLY sh(**y with me over the fact that i wanted to meet and speak w/ dr. jones....i told her that these cir****tances were a little different and we now wanted to speak w/ her about the type of surgery that would be best in my case...she was PISSED @ me!!!  "well...we normally don't do that"..."you will get to see her before they wheel you in for surgery"...WTF????????????  i don't think so....so she is still pissed at me and with a snippy attitude says...you'll have to speak to heather, dr jones' surgery scheduler...WTF??? i dont wanna cancel my surgery...i just wanna speak to dr. jones....

until now i have had a good experience w/ dr jones and her office, but this has left a bad taste (pardon the pun) in my mouth and im starting to think....we'll do your surgery as long as you dont have any questions....

i am LIVID!!!! this is my body and i am my best advocate...what is wrong with that???

Pam
I would be livid to.
But remember it is not the Dr it is the staff telling you this
I am sure with what is going on and you be worried the doctor would like to talk with you .
Personally i would go to her office and ask to talk to her for a few or keep calling back til you get some one without the attitude.
You dont need this stress right now so stay clm give it a day and call back and request to talk to anybody but Ms.Snippy.
I would be worried to that is so understandable with you just having this surgery.
Huggs

Girl, I completely agree with you...this is your body and you've gone thru a lot lately!! I would continue to demand to talk to Dr Jones until you get the answers you are looking for. Trust me, I've had similar issues with Dr Huse's staff!!!! It's soooo aggravating!!

Take care! 

The Dr's staff is a direct reflection of the doctor....I might be looking for a new doctor at this point....

Stacy Walker

I SO AGREE WITH YOU...look for a new dr!

These issues are EXACTLY why I chose Clarian over St V.  Every time I called St V even prior to the info meeting I got a run around, and very little helpfulness.  Also it was taking well over a week to get a return call from the people at St V.

So far my experience at Clarian, has been amazing.....the staff is awesome, scheduling has been smooth, and it has all be positive for me.

Stacy Walker

Pam,

When I call there, I always press the number to leave a message for my surgeon's nurse. I just don't like that secretary. Period. She got really snotty with Tiffany (my daughter) one time over FMLA paperwork and I haven't liked her every since. I do like the nurses real well though. They are very good at getting answers from the doctor for me. They are especially good with email. Given your situation, I would think that I'd want to sit down with Dr. Jones too. Is there still an option to press a number just to make an appointment? If not...or if that is how you managed to get that secretary, then choose the nurse instead.

It is generally a rule of thumb that you meet and have a 1 on 1 with your surgeon at your initial consult and then no..you don't normally see the surgeon again until right before you go into surgery. Shoot. I haven't seen Dr. Gupta since September/October and she's going to be co-operating on me Tuesday. So...that doesn't apply to WLS only.

Everything that I have ever heard about Dr. Jones has been excellent. There are bad apples though in every office/employment. The secretary is the one there. There are ways around her though. If you liked Dr. Jones when you met her and have confidence in her, I wouldn't switch doctors because of one person's bad attitude.

Sherri

Hey Pammie,
I would be pissed too.  You are right on the mark being your own advocate for YOUR health care.  My experience was so different.  I can only address my personal experience with my own doctors and their staff, whether it be bariatric or otherwise.   I am also basing MHO on the fact that I've worked at 2 different doctors offices and know the dynamics of how things "should" be done verses what actually IS done.  I had my WLS by Dr. Glass, who is in practice with Dr. Kadarabek.  I talked to Dr. Glass thoroughly at my initial consult and was not rushed through.

Due to my complicated surgery history, extensive intestinal surgeries and a tremendos amount of scar tissue in my abdomen, I requested another appt with him.  They didn't blink an eye at my request.  I went in and ask all the questions I wanted.  Then, down the road I had more questions and got another appt. with Dr. Glass.  I also talked to his nurse several times.

I never got any BS from anyone in the office about me talking with him 3X's before my surgery.  He was very polite and compassionate as well as all their staff.  

I am a very thorough person and need to have ALL my ducks in a row before I do anything.  You have every right to ask to see Dr. Jones again and get your questions answered.  I personally MHO, could NOT have had bariatric surgery if I only talked to my doctor "one" time before I went under the knife.  You are right, we are altering OUR "guts" for the rest of our lives!! 

In fact my initial consult was with another unnamed surgeon (not Jones) and I was very put off by this Dr.'s attitude and I felt like I was just being herded in like a bunch of cattle.  So I went to Dr. Glass and Dr. Kad instead and have never regretted it to this day.  You need to feel comfortable with your decision, your doctor, and the doctor's staff.  It is a TEAM effort.

I've known Dr. Rosie for a long time and I have the upmost confidence in her ability as a surgeon.  Her husband did all my PS and he is absolutely awesome in his surgery ability as well as being a kind and compassionate person.  I still occasionally go in his office to say "HI" to everybody and talk to Dr. Chris if he is willing and able.  If not, that's ok too.  They all have always treated me with the upmost respect.  I am 7 years out from the PS and I'm still never charged when I see him and neither is my insurance company.  One week after my PS, I received a beautiful huge basket of flowers at my door from the whole staff.  These doctors know we hurt and we may be regretting what we just had done.  Why did I do this???  So they send flowers with a cheery note.  I have never had any other doctors office do that for me.   

Just this year I was having some issues and Dr. Kad office got right on it, got me an appt to see the doc and he ordered tests for me.  I had the scan another day and the tech said the doctor would have the results immediately which surprised me.  I thought it would take some time to be read and dictated.   I had a scheduled appt the next week.  I called their office from St. V's Carmel to see if I could possibly see the doctor that same day, since I was already in Indy and he already had the test results.  If that wasn't possible could the nurse give me the results when she had time, (which I have always been called back within 24 hours). They told me to come on over and the doctor would see me!!  I didn't expect special treatment or to horn in on anyone's else's appt time with the doctor.  Like I said, I have worked in doctors offices and know how busy they are, but I also knew how to talk to patients on the phone with respect and not be pissy with them.  I worked for a cardiologist office, where people had heart caths and OHS, so they deserve to be treated like a person that has been through hell and back and have lots of fears and questions.  
  
Several people on Dr. Kad's staff know me because I've been a patient for 9 years but I was treated wonderful from day one.  I drop by to say hello if I'm in the vicinity.  I don't intrude on the doctors time and ask to see him.  But having a Peaceful and secure environment where I know that I am ALWAYS welcome was and still is important to me.

There are many excellent and highly qualified surgeons at St. V's including Dr. Rosie.  But St. V's is  an extremely busy office and many patients are put off by that.  We all want to be treated like a person, not a chart number or a herd of cattle.  Also, please consider that you are deciding on a doctor that will see you through for the long term.  Not just do the WLS or whatever else, and then say good-bye have a nice life.  You know I'm almost 9 yrs. out from surgery.  Losing the weight only takes 1 or 2 yrs. tops but "maintaining" the weight loss that you've achieved is forever.  Follow up is crucial to our success.  No matter what doctor you have, we need assurance that this doctor and their staff will be there for us in the long haul and care about our progress or lack thereof.  They are not the dietitian, but their knowledge is very valuable to us. 

Dr. Kad's office has always been there for me.  He is very quiet and subdued but excellent at what he does and very thorough.  He may not have the thousands of bariatric patients that the other doc's have but it is more important to me to have quality, not quantity.  Sometimes the super busy docs are so super busy and overwhelmed that they don't really get to know their patients on a personal level.  Dr. Glass and Dr. Kad are not like that at all and that's what drew me to them along with my choice of which bariatric surgery I felt was right for me.    

I'll probably get some flack from this board for saying these things because we all have an alliance with our own doctor.  We all think that our doctor is the absolue best and our doctor provided us with this valuable tool to transform our lives.   But we've all heard negative things some time or another about each and every one of the doctors.  It is really a very personal decision in choosing your doctor and you have to do what feels right to you.  But when you "HIRE" a doc to do your surgery, you are hiring their entire staff to back you up and be there for you.  We all know the docs are extremely busy, so we will spend more time communicating with the staff then the actual doctor.  They schedule appts, tests, labs, referrals, refill requests on meds, etc, etc.  So this aspect is important in choosing a doctor.

I really like my pcp in Kokomo but the staff their is the pits.  It's like pulling teeth to get them to get things done.  So I'm seriously considering finding another doc, not because I don't like her but because of how I'm treated by the staff over and over and over again.  When I get a referral from my pcp doc to another specialist, it is the staff that sets that up, not the doctor.  The staff have gotten snooty with me because I have to call them to follow through on this stuff.  I know that I am not their only patient, but their is a "reasonable" amount of time that things should get done in. 

Everybody deserves a second chance, including Dr. Rosie & her staff.  Take some time to cool off and call back and ask to speak with the nurse. If you don't feel comfortable with your "ongoing" & consistent contact with them, you may choose to go elsewhere.  This is your health and your life.  Listen to your heart, OUCH no pun intended, and talk to God about this.  He will direct you down the right path.  Call me if you want to talk.  I'm here for you, sis.

Big hugs,
Kat       

 

Pam, doc Jones is wonderful. I just had this issue with my family docs office person. They only have 2 girls and to make a long story short I called back and told her what I wanted... period!. I actually made an appointment with Dr. Jones before my surgery after the initial consultation. Dr. Jones had had an emergency that day of the first consult so I didn't get to talk to her long at all so, I called back and just explained what I needed and why and they made my appointment. You have concerns and need to talk to your doctor again. Get past the front desk staff, demand what you want. I just love Dr. Rosie!!!
Sorry they upset you. It is like that in so many offices and businesses where it becomes only a job and not a duty or personal best goal ya know. People just don't care anymore but, doctor Jones does.

I totally disagree that the staff is a reflection of the doctor.  In those offices they use the same staff for about 4 surgeons.  They are not always the most friendly staff people either.  They are more on the business side of things where the nurse and doctors are the medical side.  They are not always as sympathetic as they should be, nor understanding.  I do think I would make an appointment with Dr, Jones and be done with her dang secretary being involved.  Go with the scheduler and make the appointment so you get her undivided attention.  She would want to discuss this with you and make sure you are all comfortable and ok with what is going on.

Huge hugs,
Love ya,
T