Calling all Southern Surgical patients!

Okay, some of you may know, some may not, but my husband James is going to have WLS. We both went to the education class last summer at SS only to find out the next day that his insurance had an exclusion policy!   Anyway, after much thought and consideration, we have just added him to my insurance so he can have WLS... Of course it will be with one of the doctor's at SS, but he isn't sold on Dr. MacDonald. I liked Dr. M's experience and knowledge and knew that is what I would base my surgeon decision on, but he is leaning more towards one of the other surgeons for a different set of reasons... I want YOUR opinion. Why did you decide on your specific doctor at SS? I am not going to make this decision for him, but he has to decide by Thursday (Feb 28) and I want to provide as much research/input about all three of the surgeons as possible! Thanks for your thoughts!!!!

Hey! It's wonderful that he will be able to have this procedure done. We both know he'll do great. :) I chose Dr. Naziri simply based on referral. I had a really close friend who had her surgery with him and she spoke highly of him. Then I learned that Andrea was having her surgery with him as well. Both of them chose him again because people they knew used him as their surgeon. I personally loved his bedside manner and overall demeanor. He is extremely nice, knowledgeable, and was happy to answer all of my questions. I never once felt uneasy about him. Now that I'm 2 weeks post-op, I couldn't be happier that I chose him as my surgeon. So far it seems he did a great job. :) Making this decision isn't easy, so I'll pray that James is able to do so. :) Becky

A really great lady - who I have tremendous amount of respect for  recommended Dr. Mac. And when I talked to my family doc about the whole WLS idea he wanted to know if I had picked a doc. and when I told him who it was he just grinned. Dr. Mac was in medical school at the same time he was and that was going to be his suggestion.  Good Luck on whomever he chooses.  _Iris

I have no opinion on either doctor since I'm waaaaaaay over here & used another, but I wanted to say good luck to James. What a wonderful thing for the both of you.  xoxo Mare

Good luck to James. As Becky said, I was referred by coworkers to Nazari. When I did speak with my PCP, he was pleased with anyone in that  practice. I would just tell James to go wtih who he's more comfortable with.

Hey Mindy!!

I used Dr. Mann as he was on my referral from Tricare and Im glad he was!! He is really nice, VERY informative and has a wonderful bedside manner! He is also really funny and is easy to talk with If Dr. Mann was not available then I would use Nazari in a heartbeat. I had a lot of encounters with him in the hospital since he was checking in on Linda who had surgery one day before me and he saw me out in the hall a few times and always stopped and asked how I was doing ect. Both of them are great!! Im glad your hubby has decided to go ahead and do it and I remember when I came to visit you in the hospital he was like *its a HUGE surgery Im not ready for it* so Im glad he is ready to GO FOR IT!!

Best of luck,
Darcie

I am with Becky, I chose Dr. Nazari, basically on referrals. I have heard from a few people nothing but great things about him. I finally met him 2/21, and I am so pleased with my decision. His beside manner was awesome! He listened to me, answered all my questions, and made me feel comfortable. That was the most important to me, b/c in a situation like this, you can not help but feel a little nervous and unsure. He reassured me, and now I know that I am doing the right thing. Tell your husband Good Luck!!  I have not heard of the others, but that is not saying that they are not great either!!

Thanks everyone. I really appreciate it! He is very nervous about choosing one (even though we have had some time to think about it, we really hadn't until the last week or so).  He is leaning towards Dr. Mann, but may go with Nazeri (sp?) also... He's just not sure. Dr. Mac didn't seem to be "as nice" as he thought a surgeon could be. Dr. M can be a little "short", but he did such a good job with me that I'd recommend him in a heart beat. I think like someone else said, you can be happy with any of them there...  Thanks Darcie for your comments-- I had been meaning to PM you about this since I knew you used Dr. Mann... we were able to meet Dr. Mann once at support group b/c he talked to us about exercise, etc. James used to lift weights when he was younger and would like to get back into that again once he loses the weight, but he has a hernia now and will need that fixed during surgery. He thought Dr. Mann would understand that more than Dr. Mac.... Anyway, it is a big decision and I'm going to leave it up to him. I'm sharing all of these comments with him though, so I really appreciate your help ladies!!!

Hi Melinda!  I know I am a day late.  I have been so busy at work, I am trying to catch up on the post.  I wanted to put my 2 cents worth in.  I loved Dr. Naziri at SS.  He was really kind to my family and that meant a lot to me.  I love going to my post op appointments.  He gets so excited and makes me feel so proud of myself.  He is a wonderful Dr.  He was really kind at the hospital before and after surgery.  I strongly recommend him.  I am so happy for James.  He will have wonderful support from you.  I wish him lots of luck.