Im new here and of course I have a questions!

HI, well I just need to know if I am doing everything the right way or not, I dont know, I read so many profiles but I am not finding the exact answer I am looking for.... I just need to know if I am taking the right steps or not. So far I have contacted a surgeon which is Dr. Butler. I requested information and in it was a sheet to fill out and I mailed it back to them. a few days later I spoke with a lady over the phone, and she was telling me I could make an appointment, so I made one for the 22nd of October. I mentioned I was going to make appointments with a psychologist and my PCP and she said they give the refferals for all of that, that I did not need to do that and then she gave me the name of the psychologist they normally work with, so I have to make an appointment with that one. I am so stupid when it comes to this, I just need advice if anyone has any for me let me know. are these the steps: go to that appointment get the refferals to see the people/DOC's they want me to see make appointments with them, collect letters from them too? make another appointment with the surgeon?? then they send the stuff to my insurance???? hopefully someone can help me.... Thanks

Amal..it all deprnds on your Insurance..my went like this... 1st- went to my PCP...discussed what I wanted to do with him....he gave me a referral to Dr. Jawad in Ocala.... 2nd- called Dr. Jawad and made an appt with him..he sent me a package to bring back with me to my 1st appt.. 3rd-after 1st appt with Dr Jawad...made appt for Psyc evaluation... 4th-while waiting got all my ducks in a row..all letters from PCP/GYN/CARD and anyone else I could think of..also wrote 2 letters to the Ins company...1 from my heart and one very technical... 5th-once I got my approval....got appt for Pre-op...it was there That I was told about the gallbladder ultra-sound..the EKG and the chesht x-ray...it took about 4 months to finally have the surgery... I hope this helps good Luck on you WLS journey..Debbie

Amal - "fairy:It really depends on your insurance and the surgeon's office. I've heard some of the doctors do a lot of getting the paperwork and approvals for you. Not sure what your doctor does - who are you seeing? As for me - I followed the WLS journey on this web site and visited all my doctors in advance and got them on board and then went in for my initial visit with Dr. Overcash and had to fill out paperwork detailing my medical history for them and had to get blood work. The hardest part was getting the documentation and clearance letters from my doctors - had to stay ontop of them. Best of luck and let us know how you are doing.

hi amal, i'm terry and live in the same area if you are seeing dr butler in altamont springs. when we have finally made this life changing decision we have a tendacy to get verrrrrrrry excited!!! when you are dealing with ins, companies, their motto is the same as the military, HURRY UP AND WAIT"(HA HA) the usual protocal is your appt is made(make sure you have this referal from your pcp,it will ALWAYS be your responsability to make sure the referals are there when you show for an appt. from here on out but usually the office staff makes the calls to actually get the authorization for the visit,at the appt with dr. butlers office make sure you have written down all of your questions and concerns and if you have someone to go with you, this helps, sometimes something is said that you miss or possibly misunderstand and short of a taperecorder 4 ears are better than 2, if this is not possible ask the dr. to please take the time you deserve with such an important appointment(don't let him rush you, this is a life changing decision), after this visit you should be aware of what the dr. requires, probably the psyche consult @ the office staff will customaraly schedule this appt and that office will call your PCP for the auth. but call to make sure this has been gotten several days prior to the visit, if not call the PCP's office,after this visit(if all is OK) and depending on any other health factors(some other testing may be required if there are any) you may be referred for some other medical tests prior to your actually being put on the surgery schedule, you should at this point after the dr. butler gets the psyche eval get a call from his office to sched a pre-op visit, at this time your x-rays,labs,or anyother pretesting will be discussed and the surgery scheduler will set these appts and advise you within a couple of days.Hopefully at this point it is a down hill slide and all will go well. sometimes ins. co. make your life a little difficult, but preservance will pay off in the end!!! The important thing is communication, don't be afraid to ask questions, remember that you are the patient and be aware of the document "THE PATIENT'S BILL OF RIGHTS". if you feel you are not getting the service or cooperation from these drs. offices you deserve you need to speak with the office manager, sometimes they have a tendancy to forget they are in a service oriented industry, and remember to be patient, everything will work out in your favor.keep us posted @ best wishes. this message board is a good source of info, Terry

WOW! Thanks for the informations! Thanks alot! well I have United Health Care Options PPO. and I have an appointment with my regular Doctor, and I told the lady at dr. butlers office that, and she said not to worry, that they have a primary care doctor working with them, and also the psychologist?? so I was like really? so I dont need anything from my own doctor? she said no. I think that I am going to go ahead and get one from him anyway. (just incase) and I wanted to really see an in network psychologist because it wont cost me anything, I get 5 free visits a year with my insurance plan, I have the enhanced, and mental health is included and covered. If it is out of net work then it is only a 75% coverage and thats after I pay up $400. Dr. Butlers office said I would have to have atleast $2500 deposit on the surgery, I can gather up the money, but I just dont understand why there is not an in network surgeon in my area??? Thats even if my insurance aproves me, and I can say this now... that I am not concerned about how long it will take, I just want to make sure I do the steps right so it wont take like a year or something. Thanks yous guys are so helpful I am going to read these posts thousand times until my brain absorbs it, yeah I have comprehension problems thanks!