How to Choose a Surgeon?

How do you choose a surgeon when there seem to be so many good ones? I feel like, being in St. Louis, I'm in kind of an embarrassment-of-riches situation here. I've heard good things about DePaul, I've heard good things about St. Alexius, I've heard good things about BJC. How in the world do I pick one program to pursue when they're all covered by my insurance and they all seem really great with very competent surgeons? Help??

Hi Jennifer, I know that this step is the hardest in the beginning of the journey-IF they all take your insurance and you have the choice to go to ANY of them-the first thing I would do is research them on line-and in here-you can go to find a bariatric surgeon-go on state of MO and then see if there are testimonials about that particular surgeon. IF there is not-then if you have one you would like to know about-throw a post on the board about that surgeon.....asking if anyone had them-and ask what their experiences were/are and if they are recommended or not-people are brutually honest-as they should be-because this is very important! IF Columbia is an option for you-I had Dr. Fearing-and I rate her #1-I loved everything about her-from her knowledge to her bedside manner and SHE checks up on you every single step of the way instead of having "fellows" or students doing it for her. I cannot say enough about her-and she is with Missouri Bariatrics-Im not sure if they have a seminar in St. Louis-but they do have one in Bridgeton. I hope some of this helps-but it is definitely worth the time to research AND ask questions-like how many surgeries-rate of complications and so on.....If you need anything else-please feel free to email me or post on board. Good luck, Janet

bump