MMPC in Grand Rapids (Rant)

Hi - What has your experience been with MMPC in GR? So far I am not impressed with the front desk staff and the medical personnel have yet to raise my perception of them. (With the exception of Kim and Yvonne.) I called several weeks ago to register for an orientation. The girl said they would send me a packet of information. I never got it. I called back a week later to find out if they had my right address, a different girl hustled me off the phone and said she would send the packet. I never got it. Went to the orientation - got there at 10:45, because I thought it started at 11. I didn't get registered until 11:30. They didn't start until 12. I work, so I had to leave at 1:10. Stopped at the front desk to get my card back and the little chippie behind the counter was *SO* rude. She was abrupt and was quite unresponsive to my requests. I swear I started to cuss at her. I called the next day, spoke with 4 different people before they gave me a same-day appointment to see the internist, which is good. But when I arrived, the girl behind the counter was snappish. No greeting, just "What's your name. How much is your co-pay. Okay, have a seat." I hate offices where the receptionists do not show any trace of customer service. The internist is pushing me toward a RUIN WHY. I'm not interested in having my organs sliced apart and rearranged. It scares me to think about it, honestly. Certainly no disrespect to those of you who have chosen this procedure - I respect your choice, it just isn't the one for me. I'm almost ready to say F IT, withdraw $8k from my 401k and head to Mexico for my LapBand. Granted, I am an angry fat woman with a serious case of the HURRY UPS, but is it too much to ask to be fricking GREETED when I approach a receptionist? I understand that they are young and busy, but being busy isn't a license to be rude. I'm PAYING for a service - were it not for patients, those girls wouldn't have a job. And screw your "this is how we do things, you have to wait" attitude. I'm not expecting to jump the line, just treat me with some responsiveness and respect, and above all DO WHAT YOU SAY YOU ARE GOING TO DO. :-@ Have any of you had positive experiences at MMPC? Please share. Tell me to chill... SOMETHING. They have me all riled up! Thanks, Nathalie

Hi Nathalie, Does not sound like a good experience. Sorry I don't know anything about them. But I had my surgery at the Barix Clinic in Ypsilanti. I know it's not in your neighborhood but I can honestly say I had a wonderful experience there. I was treated very well (even by the receptionist) and I would highly recommend them to anyone. Please do not go to Mexico. I have heard many horror stories on that. The Barix Clinics have had to repair patients that had their surgery in Mexico. Believe me, I know how anxious you are - but you will be the one to suffer if you do not get it done by the correct doctor. Good luck to you. Carey

I went with Dr. Foote as did my mother and her best friend. Another friend went with Dr. Baker. Dr. Kemmeter did my pre-op EGD. The surgeons are awesoms as are the nutritionists. Also, Nancy one of the Physicians assistants is great as well. The front desk staff are very abrupt and sometimes rude, but mostly in my experience just a little impatient. I know it is unacceptable. The four of us ladies put up with it due to the fact that we wanted the very best in surgeons! The hospital (Blodgett) has an entire wing dedicated to bariatric surgeries as well. Please please please don't let the receptionists turn you off of MMPC!!! I would mention it to whichever surgeon you meet with and report the nastiness. The surgeons are in a sense their boss! Also, tell the surgeon you meet with that you want to do the lapband. They will work with you! Holly

Hi...I was there Monday and the only thing I noticed at the front dest is that those girls were really busy....They have so many Dr's there and such it must get frustrating at times dealing with so many phone calls and patients all at one time. I know how you feel tho but maybe they were just having a bad day....Please try them again!! And DO mention it to the surgeon your experience with them if it happens again!!! Good Luck!!! Hugs Judy

My mom (she had her surgery 6/2/06) went through MMPC and Dr. Foote was great and the staff at Spectrum/Blodgett was great. I agree with the previous person. You may have to deal with young not so nice people to get to the best surgeon. I am going to have mine done in Kalamazoo just because I does not fit in my schedule to drive to GR for everything. Becky

WOW! I am so sorry that your experience was..uh..less than positive. This is a huge step that you are taking and one would think that a little respect wouldn't be too much to ask. I see that another OH'er mentioned Barix clincs...and I whole hearedly second her suggestion. I cannot say ENOUGH positive stuff about them. Everything from begin to end was absolutely wonderful. The staff, the surgeons, the facility, the aftercare. I live about 45 minutes North of you and could easily have gone to MMPC, but I chose to go out of network (which depending on your insurance...may be covered if your PCP will complete an out of network form) and have been most pleased with my WL experience. If you have the ability, you may wish to take a second look. Don't settle when it comes to making important, life altering decisions like these. Best of luck in all that you do and whichever path you choose! Maria W.

Nathalie: I'm sorry you had a bad experience at MMPC. I am having my surgery with Dr. Kemmeter a week from today. The only less than optimal experience I had was the same as you - they told me they were going to send me an information package and never did. Other than that, everyone has been great. I made it known at my orientation that I had time constraints, because I am a teacher, and want to be back in time for school to start. The lady who processed my initial application at the orientation told me "Between you and me, just lean on everybody a little bit, and they'll get you right through." I mentioned to every staff person that I had a time crunch, and the gal at the front desk even offered to email Dr. Kemmeter's secretary to remind her that I was in a hurry. Voila - the next day - she called and had a surgery date. I think right now, they are just flooded with responses. Insurance companies are increasingly approving WLS surgeries, and one of the doctors, during my research, told me that the west side of Michigan has one of the highest obesity rates in the country. Must be all this snow! At my pre-surgical orientation last week, of the six of us who were there, four were Roux-N-Y, one was lap-band and I was the lone duodenal switch. I'm not sure what your BMI is, but lap-band patients have a slower weight loss and a higher regain rate. Although the matter is entirely up to you, and what you feel comfortable with, they internist might have been pushing the RNY for you because she felt it would give you faster results. Just my opinion. Good luck with whatever route you choose! Julie in Ludington

I had a RUIN WHY KNOT and had pretty good luck with it. Ask the internist what they think about that? Seriously, either surgery is a big step and they both involve cutting. Some surgeons do a great job Lap RNY. Take a look at that too. No estoy seguro si México es una buena opción. Tendría mi cirugía cerca de la casa que vivo adentro. kp

KP you made me laugh right out loud.

Please chill Nathalie. I had surgery 2 years ago with Dr. Foote and I am very happy. I have lost 160 pounds and still going down. I had a lap rouen-y, which at the time was all that was available to me. Before you opt for the lap band, do your research. Get what you want, of course, but do your research. MMPC is a very good organization, but I agree, their front-desk people and their office personnel sometimes leave a lot to be desired. You have to be extremely pushy with them. The surgeons, nutritionists, doctors are great, but the office staff ..... grrrrr! I waited nearly a year from the time I attended orientation to have my surgery beecause their office folk dragged their feet getting my insurance stuff sent in. I agree with some of the other people, you have to be pushy (wish I had been) to get what you want. I had an argument over insurance with one of the front-office folk that got quite loud about a month after my surgery that shot my blood pressure up. They had to call in the patient advocate to calm my down. But once I complained loudly, boy, did they fix their mistake. They didn't like their other patients to hear the complaints in the office. Anyway, think about what you are going to do. You can use MMPC, or you can take your care to another doctor somewhere else (there's a couple other surgeons in GR that do bariatric surgery, but they only do open RNY), but I agree, I wouldn't opt for Mexico. Take care, relax and consider all your options. Eileen