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Hi
I had Dr.Leslie do my bypass June of 2012. He was very nice and I didn't feel pressure from him to do anything I didn't want to. I also really liked his nurse. My surgery went off without a hitch! I even got a 2fer as he found a hernia and fixed it while he was there.
Good Luck! I wish you all the best!
Yes, it did. FUMC and the surgeons that go with it, are all Centers of Excellence in bariatric surgery facilities and surgeons. We are really lucky that in the Twin Cities, we have a lot of good bariatric surgeons to choose from. I'm not anti wls, and even in my case where I had major complications with my rny, that wasn't my fault, it most definitely was not Dr. Ikramuddin's. He's a brilliant surgeon and I had a technically performed PERFECT rny.
So you'll have to trust that you'll find the bariatric surgeon and bariatric surgery that works best for you. They are pretty clear, they were so in 2001 when it was just Dr. Henry Buchwald, then Dr. Ikramuddin at FUMC, that ANY of the wls has risks. But basically any surgery has it's own risk, bariatric or not.
But to best prepare wls peeps for surgery, the process is much longer, now. What I normally tell my friends who ask about wls, if they are really interested in it, is to at least find out if it's covered, go through the process. Worst comes to worst, people if they really don't feel it's right for them, don't go through with the surgery. But most people I know, as a long term peer, overall regret NOT having wls, sooner than what happened in my case, where I had major problems with my gastric bypass that just could not have been predicted.
Best of luck of what you end up deciding. Lisa
The friends that he operated on, did everything go smoothly for them?
I just saw this now. I don't know what you ended up doing. I did have Dr. Ikramuddin at the FUMC. He was awesome. But I did meet Dr. Leslie, as well as he's operated on a few of my friends as well as did an EGD on me about 6 years ago, and he's awesome, too.
Feel free to message me, if you any further direction... Lisa
Wow I am having mine done at the same place! I hope your surgery went well and you are feeling good. My surgery is September 8th.
Hi there, I have Federal BC/BS and the process is similar. The items that your doctor asked you to provide like health records, things that chart your comorbidities; history of weight gain/loss; diets, etc. are put in your file and that information is presented to the insurance provider for approval. I have been on this journey since last August (my choice) and my surgery date is August 4th. I am having my surgery at Park Nicollet and everything they asked me to provide and complete was given to the insurance company. Don't worry so much, everyone's journey, even insurance requirements, are different. Good luck!
Not sure is this thread is still active, but I will be getting the sleeve by Dr. Leslie as well. He's very kind, answered all my questions and I'm waiting to hear back from insurance then I'll schedule a date.
Hey Guys! I am new to this site and am in the beginning stages of my weight loss surgery journey. I have BCBS of MN through my employer and luckily gastric bypass and the vertical sleeve are covered. (haven't completed decided on which I want) I have gone over the medical policy that was sent to me from the BCBS but I still have questions. My main question is what documentation needs to be gathered to present to the insurance company. I have already gotten my letter of medical necessity from my PCP. I am in the process of getting my psych evaluation completed and I am in second month of the 6 month medically supervised diet. Other than the BMI qualifications, which I am more than meeting, these items are the only thing mentioned as qualifications for approval. However, I have seen other ppl on this site talk about gathering medical records and other items. I am just curious as to what all I need to be gathering over the next few months.
