Approved!

Just got my call from Dr. Harrington's office - Blue Chip has approved me for RNY! I'm so excited! They're going to handle setting up all the appts. (what a great team they are!). Can anyone give me some insight as to the types of tests I'll be taking and what to expect? Thanks! Jackie

Hi Jackie, I just wanted to say congrats! Dr. Harrington was not my Doc so I don't know exactly what kind of testing he does, but probably psych. evaluation, nutrisionist counseling, some kind of testing for your gall bladder and possibly a sleep apnea test. Good luck with everything and keep us updated! Lisa

Hi Jackie! First, congrats! This is a big hurdle accomplished! I have a consult appointment set for August 10. Wish I could get in there earlier, but am thrilled to have what I have. My sister-in-law is also a patient of Dr. Harrington's. She has just gone through all of the testing. Sleep apnea, stress, ekg, blood, nutritionist, psych, GI series, eeg are just to name a few off the top of my head. He is very thorough before even seeing anyone. The "i's are dotted and t's are crossed". Excellent doctor. I believe that Linda from his office will send you a packet shortly with dates/times in it. Keep me updated!!!

Thanks for the responses! I'm expecting a packet from Linda/Dr. H's secretary, in the next few days. I have to say that I agree wholeheartedly with everyone who's said that they've been happy with the service from his team. I haven't met him yet, but Helen and Linda so far have been fabulous! They've made it so easy up to this point! I'll let you know how things progress, and please do the same!

Could you tell me how long it took to get your first appt.? I called the office the end of April & have not been scheduled for an appt yet. Sounds like the wait is worth it..I agree that the office staff is great. I"ll be praying all goes smoothly for you. Elizabeth

Hi Elizabeth, I called back in early January and they called me about 4 weeks ago and I have an appointment for August 10. It took my sister-in-law just about a year. An actually she has her "final" appointment today after all of her testing with Dr. Harrington. She is hoping to get a surgery date today. From beginning to end, it has taken her about a year and a half. So, for me it will be about 7 months, just for an appointment. Good luck. From what I see and hear, he is the best! Denise

Hi Elizabeth, I discussed WLS with my PCP in late February, and called Dr. Harrington on the 26th of that month. At that time, I was told I would probably hear something "late spring/early summer", for an initial consult. I was prepared to wait till late May, maybe even late June, so I was pleasantly shocked when I got a call on April 30, with an appt. on May 4! I suspect that they may have had a cancellation, and since I'd called for an update the previous day (April 29), I may have been put into that open slot. This is a guess, of course, but they called me so close to the appt date that there wasn't enough time to send the pre-appt paperwork to me - I filled it out in the office on the 4th. I received my appt schedules in the mail this past Saturday (5/29), and except for the Psych Evaluation, and the "walk-in" tests (2 of them), all other appointments had been made by Dr. H's staff. I have 1 test scheduled for this Friday, 6 appts set for next week (including the 2 walk-ins, which I'll do between 2 scheduled tests), then 1 more in June, 1 in late July, and 1 in early August. After that, I have to call Dr. H's office to set the appt to meet with him for a surgical date. On 4/21, when I got my approval call, Linda/Dr. H's office told me it would take a total of 4-6 months to get to surgery. At the current rate, I could be in by September. Latest would seem to be November, but my tests should all be done by Aug 2, so things look good for late summer/early fall. All in all, I can't say enough about his staff. Helen Mi (Nurse Practioner) was great, and Linda has made this SO easy. I hope your experience is as good as mine has been so far! Good luck, and let us know how you progress! Jackie