In 1991, I had a hysterectomy at the main hospital of OHSU and stayed in the hospital 3 nites rather than the surgeon's usual 7 because I was recovering so well.  I was in the OR about 3 hours and in recovery about 2 hours.  I was on the 14th floor of the main hospital in the Women's Health Center ward on the north side (the C-wing).  I had a very large private room with its own toilet, sink, and shower, as well as a built-in cot for visitors to sit on or a visitor to sleep on.  It also had a small round table with 2 chairs.  The door to my room was kept closed at all times for privacy reasons and to keep hospital sounds out.  All the IVs and catheter were removed the morning after my surgery.  I walked the halls a lot once I did the initial walk with the nurse in the afternoon the day after my surgery.  The halls have railings on the walls to allow patients to hang on to them as needed.  The surgeon and her residents stopped by several times a day.  Medical personnel was very diligent in washing hands and using disposable gloves.  The day nurses were great.  I had different 2nd-shift nurses; one was very good and the other was not very responsive because she socialized with other patients too much and didn't seem to understand my needs when I had a problem with one of my staples.  The 3rd-shift nurses woke me up for vitals the first couple of nites but otherwise I slept a lot during their shift.  The staples were removed the day of my discharge and replaced with steri-strips which were removed about a week later.

In 2004, I had a day surgery at the day unit at the Multnomah Pavillion of OHSU and left the hospital 7 hours after being admitted.  I was in surgery 4 hours and in recovery about an hour longer than necessary because the spaces at the day unit were full.  One of the nurses told me that they usually move patients out of recovery once the patients wake up and are stable.  I had a combined gurney/bed that I could adjust with the touch of a few buttons and it was with me throughout my stay.  Overall, the staff was very professional.

In 2008, I had a lap DS at the main hospital of OHSU and stayed in the hospital 5 nites rather than the surgeon's usual 3-4 (for lap) because I had some medical issues that had to be monitored.  I was in OR about 4.5 hours and surgery took about 3.5 hours.  I was in recovery for several hours until just before 4 PM.  While still in recovery, I was transferred from the gurney to a bed and then wheeled up into the room.  I was on the 14th floor of the main hospital in the General Surgery ward on the south side (the A-wing).  I had a very small private room with its own toilet, sink, and shower.  Wing chair in room probably would not fit those over 350#.  However, the hospital is willing to bring in wider-width chairs as necessary.  All the IVs and catheter were removed the afternoon after my surgery, but the IV port was left in my arm until a few hours before my discharge.  I walked the halls a lot once I did the initial walk with a physical/occupational therapist after lunch the day after my surgery.  Again, the halls have railings on the walls to allow patients to hang on to them as needed.  The surgeon stopped by for a few minutes several times while I was there.  However, his residents stopped by on their rounds every morning, sometimes as early as 6 AM!!!  Nurses take vitals and blood sugar tests on all patients in the unit several times a day--even during the night.  Nurses asked about my pain level at every contact.  Medical personnel was very diligent in washing hands and using disposable gloves.  Hospital now uses disposable BP cuffs on inpatients.  Housekeeping cleaned my room every day.  During my stay, we had 2 fire drills:  the first just before midnite on my third nite; the second around 9 am the day of my discharge.

In all my stays, I was discharged in wider-width wheelchairs.

Take a look at "My Story" in my profile for my WLS status, timeline, and WL ticker.

A lot of us who are self-pay patients also end up going out of country for surgery - here in Oregon there are scads (like thousands upon thousands) of us!  Insurance in our corner of the world is not the greatest!

I had my DS with Dr. Baltasar in Alcoy, Spain a little over 6 years ago - with travel, 19 days in Spain, including a week in a rented apartment on the Mediterranean, food, surgery, everything - $15,800.

There are excellent surgeons all over the world offering very affordable surgery - the key is to do your homework and choose the best surgery and surgeon for you!  If you haven't found it yet - www.duodenalswitch.com has a great listing of surgeons.  It's based on patient outcomes and satisfaction - not advertising dollars.

If you ever want to chat with someone who has been there/done that - drop me a line, okay?

Blessings,

dina

Hello,
I am posting this to inform any gay lesbian OH members or Friends  that we have a Forum. If you are interested in checking it out....the direct link is http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/gay_lesbian_bisexual_trans gender/

Thank You  !!!  Hope you stop by....

Just a reminder that the OH Eugene/Springfield Support Group meeting will be Wednesday, September 17th from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Market of Choice, 29th and Willamette Streets in Eugene.  We meet in the community room, upstairs from the coffee bar.

Linda

Let me chime in as another one *****commends Dr T in Coos Bay. I had my RNY there in May for 25k - self pay. Lap is 12k. He's great, as is everyone in his office.

Before that though, I would maybe ask around here about insurance appeal letters or information if you've been denied.

If you have to do self pay, I think I remember a good rule of thumb for loan payments was $20 for every thousand. That of course depends on your interest rate. But using that calculation, it would probably be closer to $400/month.