aborted surgery

I started my journey for WLS surgery about a year ago. I have had many issues regarding it.

First being that I went through true results and even tho my insurance said I had completed everything, they weren't submitting it.

Eventually they did, and surprise! I was approved within days!

I went and did my egd, and I didnt eat past 8, earlier than my set time.

That was another obstacle. My egd came back abnormal

So I had to go get a gastric emptying study. (Remind you I already have a year of doctor bills, and im a teenage college student) that came back abnormal as well, saying esophagus isn't the best which rules out the sleeve and lap band and my only procedure I can have is the bypass.

So I went and got approved for that (my insurance is getting cancelled at end of month) then I was having problems with the hospital saying I wasnt approved even tho tml says I am.

I was on my liquid diet for two weeks, I was allowed two shakes and one healthy meal. Just did the shakes, being more strict than required.

Day of surgery, my doctor is more than an hour late, when he shows up rushes me back, doesnt talk to me or anything. 

I get there, he's in for maybe twenty min decides im too big for him to do it. (Not just my liver, but im too fat, I was 319 day of surgery, I had lost 15 pds.

Tells my mom I was too big, and his tools weren't long enough. Then he left, didnt stay around didnt talk to me.

He was in a hurry.

I woke up in pain with five incisions thinking I did it! Just to hear he decided he couldn't.

Ive done everything I could and now my stomach hurts and is uglier.

Had this happened to anyone, has anyone had him?

Ps he put a lap band on my aunt who is way bigger then me, but yet im too fat? 

Also, dont know what to do bout scars.

Wow.  Sorry to hear that.  I think I would file a complaint with the state board.

How do u do that?

Sue him. Get as much as you can. Maybe you won't have to worry about your college bills.  If he was any kind of surgeon he should have know he couldn't do it before he went and left scars on you. You said you are a teenage college student and when my kids were younger image is what they were all about so I can just imagine how you feel with the scars. It would have been a different story had you actually had the surgery but you didn't. So sorry you went through all this for nothing. I bet he will still get paid for the surgery since he so called tried. I wouldn't give up though. Call your insurance company tell them what happen and see what you can do now. Good Luck with your journey.

I'd sue the heck out of this dr.  

I would, my mom is considering it especially after seeing m 6 scars.

the fact that I need help getting outta bed cause all our beds are close to the ground.

He did tons of tests on my to check my stomach, to check my liver....

Yet he ahem on with it so I figured I was good.

He didnt check my stomach before to physically feel the lover.

He was in too much of a hurry.

Its gonna be hard to get out of this depressive state ive been in.

 

That is very poor care by that doctor. Bariatric surgery is for large, morbidly obese people, in our program we can do patients up to 600 pounds.  If there was a medical reason for not doing you, he should have known that ahead of time.  Most programs make the consent read "possible open" so that if for whatever reason they couldn't do it laparoscopically as least you would still have the procedure.  With an open operation there would be a longer recuperation, but at least you have to tool you need to lose the weight.  After you heal I would search for a reputable program with a dr that is much more caring person who actually gets to know you a little before surgery.  I'm so sorry for you, you really got a bad deal.  Good Luck~~

 

In fairness to the doctor, it is almost impossible for a doctor to manually feel the liver of ANYONE (unless it is significantly enlarged), llet alone someone who is MO or SMO, because the majority of the liver sits underneath the ribcage.  When you add a significant amount of fat to the scenario, it is even more difficult.  That is why surgeons rely on ultrasounds, etc. to check the liber before surgery.  The fact that he did not try manual palpating does not mean he didn't do something that was crucial.

Why is your mother "especially" considering a lawsuit because of seeing your incisions? Is there something about them that is abnormal?  I understand how disappointed you are, but six small lap incisions will disappear in no time and will barely be visible. It is pretty standard to have 5 or 6 incisions, so it isn't like the doctor did something unusual, unless they are very large or something...

How do you know that the surgeon "was in too much of a hurry"?  

I DO understand how distressing it must be to discover that you didn't get the surgery, but I think you will feel better psychologically if you take steps to move forward with another surgeon rather than get mired in the disappointment and anger.  They are understandable, to be sure, but what's done is done and cannot be UNdone.  If you start working with another surgeon who can reassure you that (s)he routinely does surgeries on people even larger than you I think you will find that some of your depression will lift and you will start looking forward to being a post-op.

Lora

ETA: MOST surgeons don't stick around until a patient comes out of anesthesia to talk to them after surgery.  People can be in recovery for quite a while. They do exactly what he did: they talk to the family and then either leave or go on to the next scheduled surgery.

 

I'm sorry this happened to you.  You must be very disappointed after going through all the work you did to get ready for the surgery. Suing the doctor because you have a few small scars and you need help getting out of your bed because its too low to the ground isn't the answer.

Wow.  I am sorry you went through everything and didn't get the bypass completed. Unless you are VERY short, and have a LOT of your weight in your belly, the surgeon should have been able to do the surgery.  Surgeons routinely do lap surgeries on people who are more than 320 pounds!  He knows his instrumentation and his own capabilities (some surgeons DO struggle to work on people who are very large through the abdomen), he should have known ahead of time that he might not be able to do the surgery laparoscopically.  (Does this surgeon ever do the surgery open?? Many surgeons will convert to an open surgery if they run into problems with the lap surgery.)

There really isn't anything you can (or need) do about the scars.  They will naturally fade to thin white lines in a few months and will be very slight.

I know several people here have suggested a lawsuit, but that is likely a waste of time, energy, and money. Although he should have known that there might be an issue and should have talked to you about that beforehand, what he did almost certainly doesn't rise to the level of malpractice. If he only does lap surgery and found that he was having trouble for whatever reason, then he did what was medically appropriate by not continuing.  I'm not saying he wasn't a first class ass in the way he handled it, but it isn't malpractice.  

I would suggest making an appointment with another surgeon, explain  what happened, and ask whether the second surgeon can do the surgery (and, worst case, if that surgeon runs into problems, if (s)he can convert to an open surgery so you won't wake up again without the bypass having been done).

I would also suggest getting a copy of the operative report so you can be sure that he is being honest about exactly what happened during the surgery that caused him not to do it.  Not only for your own knowledge, but also so you can show it to another surgeon.

Lora