Anyone here w/Dr. Kemmeter of GR? Pre-Op Help!!!

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone here has had surgery performed by Dr. Kemmeter in Grand Rapids, MI and if so I am hoping someone could give me some insight on my situation and what to do because I am at the point of thinking about switching doctors because of his coordinator Nettie.

I saw dr. kemmeter on 5/05/09 to discuss my surgery options ( I have a lap band that is causing issues and a hernia) and decided that doing a revision to RNY was my best option, so on 5/11 I called his pre-op coordinator Nettie and left her a message the follwoing Tuesday.  Never heard from her so I figured because I called at 2 she may have left the office (I was calling to tell her what my decision was so they could start the authorization letter).  I never heard from her all day Wednesday, so on Thursday morning I called and left another voicemail.  She STILL never returned my phone call. 

I waited until the weekend was over and called on Monday - still no call back.  Finally when I called on Tuesday she exclaimed that "she had been expecting my call" which seriously pissed me off because I left my number several times for her to call me back (I was calling because I wanted to know if there was anything on my end that needed to be done).  I told her what my decision was, so she looked at my insurance information and told me I needed to get my lab blood work done and so she would fax the paper work over to Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, MI and then call the ins company (Cofinity/PHP) to see if there were any pre-requistes and if she found anything out she'd call me right back.

Well within 20 minutes she called back to tell me that she was angry because they were requiring me to go to some weight loss seminar even tho I already had weight loss surgery and that she left a message w/the director and that maybe if i could call and talk to someone they could clear it up.  So, I said okay and that I would get back with her.  So I called the ins company and apparently she never told them that I had the lap-band done so all new patients who are wanting any sort of GBS had to go through this program but now that they now I've already been though it I am a different case and they are able to let them know when the authorization comes in. So I told the women thank you and called Nettie back and lvm for her on wednesday after 4pm. 

She called me back on Thursday or Friday and I told her the entire conversation I had with the insurance company and that now they are aware that I have already had the lap-band done I would be treated differently because i had the procedure done.  Nettie claimed that I hadn't had the procedure done quite a few times before i finally told her that YES i had it done three years ago on 8/14/06 by a different doctor.  She then paused, looked at her paperwork (I could hear her riffling through everything) and then claimed that she had told the insurance company that i already had the procedure done.

After Nettie had faxed over the blood work paperwork to Sparrow the week of 5/10/09 I went and got my labs drawn only to discover that Sparrow had lost my paperwork and were going to be doing a "rainbow test" and that they would call me on Monday 5/18 if anything else was needed.  I don't trust Sparrow after they misdiagnosed me only a few months back (they told me I had inflammation of the cartlidege - when in fact I had complicated pneounima w/fluid on my lung that caused be to be hospitalized) so I called on Tuesday to Nettie to find out if everything was okay or if i needed to go back to the labs.  I did not hear ANYTHING back from her after that.    I had to trust Sparrow, thus I placed a call and that ensured me that everything was fine and I didn't need to come back in for any additonal blood work.  I left the message on Tuesday 5/19/2009 and as of 5/28/2009 I have yet to get a call back letting me know everything was fine and that I don't need to worry about anything.  I even left the message asking her to call me back either way because I had more questions for her. 

I had also let her know  that my insurance company was not changing so I wasn't in as much of a rush (if we were changing insurance companies I was trying to get the surgery done before july 1st) but I would still like to procedee and get everything going so we could schedule a date.  I know for a fact after calling the front desk and asking if she was working last week that she was out on Thursday and Friday 5/21-5/22.  Finally on 5/28/09 I called the front desk and explained to them that i was frustrated that she wasn't calling me back and so they tried to get a hold of her butshe was away from her desk and that she would call me back later.  They took my information down at around 1:30.  FINALLY Nettie called me back at about 3:30-3:45 and I missed the call because I was on the phone at my place of employement.  I no sooner hung up 3 minutes afterwareds - listened to the message - called her back and got her voicemail....and as of 6/01/09 I have STILL yet to hear from her and I'm getting to the point that I am no longer wanting to deal w/this women.  

Anyone have any suggestions or comments on how to deal with her? I am at the point of wanting to speak w/her supervisor and having them handle my situation.  I am aware that she has other patients - that's fine and I understand I am not going to be #1 priority, but I was taught that when someone leaves you a message to call them back you do it in a timely manner and not a week or two later.

Thank you in advance!
- erin

Dr. Kemmeter is great, as are the other docs there and the rest of the staff. But their office staff sometimes is lacking, including Nettie. Sometimes you really have to pester them to get things done. If she's giving you problems, I would go to a supervisor. But don't abandon the whole practice because of her, because the doctor and the rest of the practice are superior (just let the docs know when you get there the problem had).

I had similar difficulties with getting my calls returned.  It was SO frustrating.  I finally sent an e-mail to the office manager/Dr. Kemmeter through GHP's Web site (not sure if it ever reached Dr. Kemmeter, but I did receive a return e-mail from the office manager and a call back shortly thereafter).  After that, I obtained my surgery approval pretty quickly.  All in all, my approval process ended up taking about six months after I attended the seminar.

I also encourage you to hang in there.  Dr. Kemmeter is a great surgeon!  I didn't have much pain and my recovery was a breeze.

thanks.  actually i got really upset today and I broke down and called the front desk and asked to speak to her supervisor. i left her a message telling her that as much as I like dr. kemmeter i believe the care that i am recieving from nettie is inadaquate (sp?) and that i would like someone else to handle my case as i don't believe she is what the best option for me as the patient...however within 10 minutes i got a phone call back from her telling me that I should be hearing from her later today before the day ends....that was 7 hours ago....apparently now they are submitting my insurance authorization but they wanted to make sure everything was okay w/blood work and stuff....but she couldn't tell me that weeks ago.  I just feel like she doesn't know who "I" am the patient rather than just a number somtimes....

Nettie is worthless.  I don't understand how she continues to be employed.  Dr. Kemmeter is very worth it though, just continue to be persistent.  He is a very skilled surgeon, and you shouldn't let an inferior administrator distract from what you are really after -- the talent of the surgeon.

Sounds like you have figured out what to do -- go around Nettie and place the call for Kim, the practice manager.

btw, GHP is mainly RnY & LB, so if you stay with revising to a RnY, you should be good to go with their post-op aftercare program.  If, however, you change your mind and decide that a DS is a better option, their aftercare program is seriously lacking and you will want to get your information from the OH DS forum (you can find the DS links on my profile).

I concur with what everyone else has said.  Dr. Kemmeter is worth sticking with, but Nettie is awful.  When I read about the horrendous situations others have found themselves in due to the lack of skill of their surgeons, I'm grateful I had Dr. Kemmeter.  I've had no problems at all.  But Nettie almost drove me crazy before my surgery.  Thankfully, you won't have to deal with her post-surgery.

I would strongly suggest that you send a link to this thread to Nettie's supervisor so she can see what's being said about their office on the world wide web.  My surgeon's staff had asked me what was being said about their surgeons on OH and all I've seen has been positive.  Possibly Dr. Kemmeter should know of this discontent...sometimes the surgeons have blinders on when it comes to their staff.

jan

Not a bad idea, Jan, but they know.  Or should; they've been told time & time again.  First, the excuse was they were going to fix things when they moved to their own practice (formally part of MMPC), and then it was the start-up challenges of the new practice.....now??

Nettie isn't the only problem, unfortunately.  It is such a vulnerable time for people who have finally resigned themselves to needing WLS, so it is sad to see people go through this.

But, the surgeons are worth it.  And, maybe it is meant to be a test of true desire?

You may be right.  I'd still want to know, or be told again what's being said.

update:

I would like to thank those who have responded to my post.  Things took a turn for the worst when I woke up last week with chest pains related to coughing related to my acid reflux and I had to get into his office quickly, Nettie was wonderful....I had called the front desk to make an appointment and was not able to get in for another two weeks, so I made the appointment and asked to speak w/her and she answered her phone and I broke down crying and sobbing because the last time this happened i was in the hospital w/complicated pnenoumia w/fluid on the lung and I couldn't go through that again.  She was able to get me in a week earlier, and put me through to the nurse who had Nettie call me back within 20 minutes to tell me they wanted me to come down ASAP that day (last thursday 6/4/09).  I am very greatful that she was patient w/me and helped me out because I honestly didn't think I was going to make it two weeks.

I am doing much better now and waiting for an answer from my insurance company on whether they will approve the RNY w/a hernia repair so please keep your fingers crossed.

Also, as much as I appreciate your insight, this was just something that I needed to get off my chest and express to those who have been through frustrating times.  My friends/family/co-workers were sick of me complaining and I needed an outlet and this was it, however someone took it upon themselves to e-mail this to Kim, Nettie's boss and she called me.  I was deeply embarassed because I was not planning on mentioning this until after this orderal was all over.  I appreciate the thought, however this was just an outlet for me needing to release my frustrations.

thank you :)