General Practioner who supports bariatric surgery in the Inland Empire

Ok so I had Sleeve surgery done in 2012. My surgeon was in Burbank (about 90 miles from my home one direction) My employers switched insurance shortly after my sleeve surgery so I did not have much aftercare post surgery. In hindsight I started having difficulties almost immediately (I believe I may have had a hiatial hernia) but now I am definitely having some difficulties with my pyloric valve, 3 hernias (confirmed through CT Scan) and weight gain. Id like to troubleshoot these issues with my surgeon or ideally a surgeon closer to home. My current PCP is anti weightloss surgery so he referred me to a general surgeon but despite the fact that I have already had sleeve surgery he refuses to refer me to back a bariatric surgeon to discuss my concerns as they relate to my sleeve, the pyloric valve and hernias. I was hoping to find a local doctor who is at least willing to refer me back to a bariatric surgeon to consult on my troubles, since I am HMO I can not self refer. At the bare minimum I need to switch doctors as my current primary refuses to even read me the full results of my CT scan and berates me for gaining 8lbs in 4 months (really not exagerrating this). If anyone can recommend a general practioner that wouldnt block me from consulting with a doctor experienced with sleeve to have these other concerns addressed I would really appreciate the info. 

 Thanks in advance

Sarah

In case you don't get any specific suggestions, in a situation like this I recommend getting a list of PCPs who are covered by your insurance and starting to call them one at a time - ask before scheduling if they'll support WLS or not.  

Thank you for the suggestion. I imagine this would be difficult to shop outside of my group by asking receptionists what the doctors personal stance is on bariatric surgery but if it comes down to it I may try.

The other thing you can try is working backwards -- find a bariatric surgeon on your plan who looks good, call their office, and tell them that you are looking to switch to a PCP near them that supports bariatric surgery and see if they can recommend a couple of names. I know my surgeon's practice has referral names they can give out for PCP's they work with frequently in our area. Good luck!

It's definitely a pain in the butt - I've had to do this when therapist hunting in the past.  But, it saves everyone's time vs. making appointments and finding out at the appointment that the doctor isn't a good fit.  

Hi Sarah - I had my surgery through LLUMC's bariatric program but my PCP is at Beaver Medical Group in Redlands. I don't know if that would be too far for you, but she is very supportive of WLS. Her name is Dr. Brandstater. Something else you might consider: LLUMC holds informational meetings every two weeks and there is always a surgeon present (unless things have changed since I attended a year and a half ago).

http://surgical-hospital.lomalindahealth.org/our-services/me tabolic-and-bariatric-surgery/attend-seminar

I hope this helps. Good luck!