Any Hurley patients out there who have dealt with Dr. Minasian?

I had my pre-op tests for surgery yesterday and had a very disappointing meeting with the Internest, Dr. Minasian. I had to wait over 2 hours for to see him, my appointment was at 11 am and I did not see the doctor until 3 pm, I did have to do some lab testing and have a chest xray but I was in my gown in the exam room by 12 noon and did not see the doctor until 3pm! The second time the nurse came in to remind me that I hadn't been forgotten she told me that he does spend an hour with each patient. So, when he came in and saw me for only 20 minutes I was very upset! He was very critical and shaming.  I was jus curious if anyone else had a bad experience with him?

Hello,

I was just at Hurley with my boys a week or so ago as both of them are having surgery in December.  I specifically made the appointments for them for 8:00 am because I knew that there would be a wait if we weren't one of the first appointments.  I had my surgery in 2009 and I had a later in the day appointment and yes, I had to wait.  I don't think it was as long as you, but it was a couple of hours.  My daughter also had surgery in May and when she saw Dr. Minacian, we waited about an hour. 

I can't say he was critical and shaming, but he was jvery blunt and to the point with all four of us. 

When is your surgery?  My sons are having surgery on Dec 13th!

Nan

Thanks for your reply! My surgery is scheduled for December 15th, but Dr M has told me that he might cancel it because of yesterday. So we will see. I really liked Dr Wagner the surgeon and everyone else at the center but not Minansian. Lisa

Why did he tell you he might cancel it??  all four of us have Dr. Kralovich as our surgeon and I really like him a lot.  He is very caring and down to earth.  I also liked Dr. Wagner. 

Yep, sounds like the same Dr. M we all know and love. 

I wish that Hurley would warn patients that the pre-op testing takes ALL day. I was there for 6 hours, I think. But yes, this is standard for the pre-op appointments... they need to do a lot of stuff and they try to get as many people through in the day as possible. Even for Dr. M's normal patients, they tell me the wait times to see him are outrageous. But since he's the only bariatrician in the area, people flock to him for his knowledge.

His bedside manner is a bit off, huh? I remember he asked me why I got fat and what I'd done to control it. His words were harsh, but I met them with a straight spine and a direct answer to match his direct question. Unfortunately not a lot of people can be so direct with doctors and not take their crap. He does it on purpose though, I think. It's almost like he's testing patients to make sure they have the guts to really go through with this surgery and deal with all the stuff that goes along with this new life. It's not easy and he knows that.

I've definitely had a few run-ins with him on some issues -- mostly his views on some vitamins don't match mine and I stand up for myself and call him out on stuff sometimes. But he's still a very good doctor and he's one of the smartest guys I know when it comes to bariatrics. He knows his stuff and I'm glad he's a part of Hurley's program.

Good luck with your surgery! Keep us posted!

Pam

I agree with Nan and Pam.  I saw him at the end of July.  He is very blunt, but I feel he really wants you to understand what you are getting yourself into.  My sister went on the same day, and he made her cry.  Like I said, he was very blunt.  He ended up canceling her surgery because of all the other issues she had going on.  She was upset, but it was for her own good.  She probably would not have made it through her surgery.