If so can you share your experience with them and if you would do it over again?

I have consults set up with both of them. Or if you used someone else who wasn't too far away from Corvallis...let me know.

Thank you!!

deb366

I bookmarked the page, maybe by then I'll have actually had WLS.  ;)  I hope so anyway!!

~Melody

 Hello everyone,

I have mostly been a lurker on this board, but I thought it would be a good time to come out into the open since I just had my lap-band surgery 3 days ago. 

So far, so good. Right now I know I am on the clear liquids diet, and should be trying for 60-90 grams of protein a day, but this is kinda challenging for me. 

Are there any suggestions out there for good ways to get your fluids and protein...especially right after surgery?

Any information would be appreciated. Thanks, and I look forward to hearing more.

Best,
Lucia

When I was looking into being a self-pay patient I was approved for $25,000 and the payments were going to be almost $600 per month for 60 months (the range was $534-$757 depending on the interest rate). I ended up waiting and going through my insurance 2 yrs later. 

In Seattle I was going to go to NW Hospital which at the time was not a center of excellence and they were charging $23,000 for a lap RNY.  At the UW Medical Center they were charging $33,000 for the same procedure (and they are a center of excellence). 

Also, make sure to ask what post-op care is incl in the cost and how many nights in the hospital it covers (at NW Hospital the surgeon's visits were covered for the first 3 months, not sure with UW).

Good luck

Alicia

 I had my lapband at OHSU on August 20.  The approval process through the doctors office was kind of long.  There were lots of testing requirements and waiting for records to transfer and be entered into the system.

Once you are let through to  see the surgeon things seems seem to go a bit more smoothly (although I do wait around a lot for the doctor to make it into see me-either in his office or OR (best advice-bring your own reading material!!)

My big picture for the whole process is hurry up and wait.  Everything takes twice as long as it reasonably should.  

When I had my surgery date I showed up to the hospital at 11 checked in at noonish and then sat in preop until 5pm to get wheeled into surgery.  I did not get out of recovery and into my room until almost midnight!  (I really don't know why-the surgeon suggested they were waiting for a bed).

I had to share a room with another new lapbander and although at first this didnt thrill me I think in the end it was good because we got to talk.  We shared a bathroom.  They refused to take out my cath. until just a couple of hours before I was discharged (completely unreasonable as I have had a heck of a lot more invasive surgeries and getting up to pee peeing was a huge motivator to walk around).  

The person who wheeled me to my room complained several times at the size of my bed (hmm i tried not to take it personally but im sorry i was in a fat person bed and she should have been more sensitive).  LIkewise the person who wheeled me out of the hospital complained about how the person before me did not fit in the chair (i did not suggest that she should have gotten a bigger chair and not complained to me about it).  

The nursing staff either had one heck of a busy floor (I did not see evidence but who knows there could have been really sick people behind closed doors) or just did not care a whole lot.  One nurse was told to help me with a bath.  She moved everything as far away from me as possible.  put both sides of the bed down then disappeared.  I could not get up because i could not push the heavy tray away.  I could not get in my bed because i had nothing to grip to get back in it.  I finally manage to bend way over to push my button (mind you I was cathed, I'V'ed and really sore) so this was no easy task.  The RN came in but by then i was crying (i cry when I am really mad!!)  She fixed stuff but it was inexcusable.  I would rather have washed my face and teeth and called it good.

Finally during the 2 hours I was allowed to pee again we were supposed to pee in a tray to measure liquids out.  Well  because i was sharing there were two of us with trays.  No one bothered to remove the tray and I had to wait around for several minutes while a nurse made her way back to my room to empty the tray so I could pee in mine.  Sheesh!!  I think that is why they refused to take the caths out. 

OK so I just whined quite a bit!  and I have to say it was a bit more irksome than my multiple experiences at Providence hospital for my c-section, 1 hernia repair, and gallbladder removal.  But like all hospitals- procedures are followed whether they make any sense whatsoever.   I had trouble with the tray empty, catheter removal and waiting around in post op at providence too.

The complaining orderlies was new and sharing a room was new.

The surgery is awesome!  I love my band already and I have had no side effects. I like Dr. Wolfe even though he is not very punctual and it is a pain in the rear to get to see him for the first time.

So I would do it again in heart beat.  I would just bring and plan to in the future bring my own novels to read while I wait!!!!