Well it seemed like a good idea ...

A month or so ago I decided to try (again) to find a Lap-Band doctor to handle my aftercare. I've spent over a year in limbo, maintaining about a 55 - 60 pound loss. I'm frustrated. I'm tired. I'm done with holding still. So I found one local doctor who will consider seeing another doctor's patients. I made an appointment 4 weeks ago. I didn't have the best gut instinct feeling about this doctor and his office staff. But hope springs eternal and I went ahead and kept the appointment. I should have listened to my gun instinct. The doctor walks in and says, "So you're interested in having bariatric surgery." Yes, I know I still look like a "before" picture - but he could have at least read my chart and seen that I was there for follow-up care and that I had surgery more than two years ago. He said, "You should have lost more weight by now." So I tried to explain that I haven't been able to find a surgeon to do my aftercare for 14 months and that I've maintained my weight loss during that time. He replied, "You're here for a fill then." "No," I explained, "I think I might be too tight. I have period problems getting foods down without getting stuck. Some days I'm just fine and other days I can't get anything but liquids down. I'm eating a lot of foods I shouldn't be eating because I'm leery of eating. I never know when I'm going to have a day when I just can't eat." His response to that was, "If you're not losing weight you need a fill. Since you haven't lost weight in over a year and you're just maintaining a small weight loss you probably just need a fill." So I tried again to explain the pain, sliming, foaming and occasional PBs. He again replied that if I haven't lost weight I need a fill and went on to say, "I can take all the fluid out but you'll just gain weight back." I tried to explain I don't want a complete unfill. I just want him to pull out a little saline. Maybe .5 cc or so. At which point he says, "Well I'd have to do a fluoro and make sure everything is in the right place." Ah-ha! I think. We're finally making some progress. Even though this is the doctor whose office staff told me, "We don't do x-rays." Then he says, "Of course I can't even think about doing anything until I have your records from your surgeon. You need to call your surgeon and the doctor in Nashville and have them send you copies of your records. When you get the records call and make another appointment." And he walked out. He was in the room with me for less than 5 minutes. Didn't listen to a word I said. Then told me that he can't do anything until he gets my records. And then his office charges me $150.00 for the "office visit." So I'm back to square one. Only now I'm contemplating having the band removed. Without proper aftercare I'm going to continue to be fat anyway. As we all know without proper aftercare the Lap-Band is pretty useless. I figure if I'm going to be fat anyway I might as well be fat without a surgically implanted device that flares up on its own whim to make me miserable. This is officially my worst decision ... ever. And the biggest waste of money in the history of my life.

An update to the saga. I called the surgeon's office and left a message saying that I was rather upset with the way I was treated in the office yesterday. I got a call back from the bariatric coordinator. She responded to my message with an apology because she "didn't know" that the doctor would need the medical records from my surgeon before he could do a fill on a patient that he didn't do surgery on. I accepted her apology for that but stated that I think it is highly unprofessional to be so uninformed about the office policies. I registered a complaint to her about the fact that I was supposed to have had a consultation and the doctor said, "I can't do anything without your records," and walked out. Her response to that was, "He was on call yesterday." Then went on to say that they don't usually schedule weight loss patients when he's on call because he cannot give enough attention to the weight loss patients while on-call. She stated that the office staff rescheduled patients who had appointments yesterday because he was on-call. I pointed out that no one called me to reschedule and I reminded her that I called in the morning to confirm my appointment and no one said anything to me about the doctor being on-call or rescheduling anything. I told her that I was very angry that I was charged 150 dollars for an appointment that never happened She said, "I understand. That is a problem. Maybe I can talk to the doctor and we can work something out." I told her not to bother. She tired to talk me into keeping the appointment. I just told her that between the unprofessional conduct of the office staff and the doctor's unwillingness to listen to me and his apparent lack of experience I had no desire to see the doctor. I also stressed that I have been sick with the flu for a week, my daughter is sick and my husband is also sick. I took time out of my very busy day and caring for my family to come to the appointment that never happened. I informed her that I would be disputing the charge with my credit card company for my "non-appointment" and driving back to Florida to see my original surgeon rather than see the surgeon. Moral of the story - If you have a Lap-Band you should hope that you never have to move, that your doctor never moves, retires or dies. Because finding a new doctor for follow-up care can be difficult (if not impossible).

Carole, Sorry that you're going thru a rough time w/ the new Doc.....but Good For You!! You gave them something to think about. You're the patient/customer here....and should be treated as such. I agree w/ Nancy that we have to be informed and not afraid to ask questions, but it sounds like you did..... I hope things work out..... - Ann

Hi Carole, I think you handled the office call very well. You stated your case, stuck to your guns and told them you received insufficient treatment. Good for you! You are correct that it can be difficult to find another doctor to care of band patients. I believe it is the same for other weight loss surgeries. I always recommend not having the surgery unless you will be staying in the area long enough to get to goal. After that, the office visits are only twice a year and my doctor will do them by phone if nothing serious is going on. Unfortunately, not all doctors advise you of the follow up requirements of the band and that you may have difficulty finding a doctor in another area. I will keep you in my thoughts and hope good things will happen for you. Vicki

Vicki, Thank you. I knew the follow-up requirements of the Lap-Band. I just never expected that I would move. I lived in Florida for 28 years. I'm an only child who lived in Florida because my parents lived there. They need my help and I figured I'd live in Florida until my parents passed away (at least 10 - 15 more years). Then my parents decided to move and they offered us the opportunity to move with them and my husband got great job offer in my parents new area. It was a freak set of cir****tances that I never could have imagined happening. Fortunately we didn't move further away from my surgeon than we did. It is an 11 hour drive to get there, but at least it is "doable." Thanks again, Carole

I had my band done in Mexico so aftercare could have been an issue. But it hasnt been. My Mexico surgeon referred me to the doctor I see now. So the moral to every story doesnt have the same ending. I hope you get things worked out.

I know that not everyone will have problems finding new aftercare. Some people are fortunate to not have problems. And I'm really glad that so many haven't had issues. But there's a misconception that if your Lap-Band surgery is performed by a U.S. surgeon you won't have any problems finding a new doc should you need one. I asked about situations like this before being banded and was assured (both by my surgical practice and other Lap-Band patients) that it wouldn't be a problem. I think it is important that people realize that it can be hard to find a doc for follow-up care. My husband and I have decided that for now we will just deal with the inconvenience of several days worth of travel and the added expense of going back to Florida for follow-ups.