trying to decide between Dr Lopez, Dr Kelly and Dr Ortiz for lap sleeve or any better dr...

Hi :) Im brand new here, and am trying to decide between Dr Lopez, Dr Kelly and Dr Ortiz for lap sleeve surgery before the end of the year, im 5'8.5" and about 250-270 lbs , 44 and in decent health other than this weight my entire life , i lost 30 lbs in 5th grade and thats when it began for the rest of my life. any words of wisdom, I was looking at kiannas vids on youtube about dr lopez at a lighter me, and he has now relocated, but ive read some bad things about him, and all the drs act, i know good and bad with all, just wondering if anyone knows any definite bad choices in the ones ive named , or an AMAZZING dr suggestion im not aware of? thank u

Hi! 
I used Dr. Kelly for my VSG. It was the best decision I have ever made. He is an excellent surgeon and such a nice man. His entire team is fantastic. I will message you with the page of  my daily experience  from the OB help site. Good luck with your decision. I know you will not regret it if you do pick Dr. Kelly.   Linda

Thank you so much for this Linda!  I would love to get the page of your daily experience.  How much weight did u lose and how long ago did you have?  Im not afraid to go to Mexico , as long as u research dr just like in US, Im most concerned about picking right dr and long term effects.........since its relatively new i guess , .....the sleeve?  I will be self pay, probably going by myself unless i connect with someone on here going at same time.... what was the hospital you had your surgery in? thank you so much for writing!  

It is on Page 3 of the Nova Scotia forum (under sleeved by Dr. Kelly). My surgery was at the small Florence Hospital Oasis of Hope which was great. Dr. Kelly now uses Angles Hospital. It is quite new and beautiful. We had our leak tests done there. I'm going to message you.  Linda

Of the 3 I would choose Dr Ortiz although when I made my choice I chose Dr. Wilhelmy. I wanted  a more experienced surgeon and in my research he is better, I had already gone to the hospital with my mom last year so  I knew first hand what to expect. Dr. Ortiz has a  better reputation than the other 2 so if those were my  only 3 choices  I would choose Ortiz. 

Hi kristine!! I looked into and considered all of those surgeons but ended up going with dr. illan with baja bariatrics.

After doing some research of my own and gathering feedback from other patients, I gathered this information :)

> Dr. Illan graduated in the top of his class with honors. The University he went to is widely regarded as the " leading University in the spanish speaking world including Spain and Portugal. " (source: Wikipedia)

> He is the Chief of Emergency/Trauma surgery at a large hospital in Tijuana, Mexico.

> He works at the ER hospital a few days a week. As Chief, he works on the more immediate and intensive care patients like gunshots, etc. On days he has up to 3 bariatric surgeries booked, he has someone cover him at the ER hospital and does not go in. He only performs 3 or 4 bariatric surgeries, maximum- per day. In other words, he is not exhausted nor doing an assembly line.  

(A side note: There are mentions in various places of "Dr. Illan being an 'assistant' to Dr. Ramos Kelly." Dr. Ramos has lost privileges from several hospitals for various reasons. Dr. Illan was NOT an 'assistant'. He did not "learn" from Dr. Kelly. Since Dr.Illan is also a trauma/ER surgeon, other bariatric surgeons preferred having him with them - it would make things that much safer in their operating rooms. So he has assisted many surgeons in the area).

> During surgery, he has 2 other surgeons in the room assisting him (so a total of 3 surgeons), plus 2 scrub nurses and a technician. He does the surgery himself - there are no ghost surgeons or students. 

> He closes with 3 levels. 1. He does the 3 staple on each side using Johnson and Johnson with covidian staples (all surgeons do this). 2. He then sews a line from top to bottom behind the staple line (many do this but some just do the junctures where the staple cartridges were reloaded, and some don't at all). 3. Then he coats the staples with bio -glue (very few do this extra step). He, then, closes the outside incisions with sutures on the inside and glue on the outside. 

> He does 3 leak tests (2 during surgery and 1 the day you check out of the hospital).

> Complication rate 1 in 500, 

Leak rate 0

infection rate 0. 

> The OR has been described by visiting US nurses as having "excellent technology" and "quite frankly, better than the OR she works out of in the USA."

> The coordinator tells you in advance of any extra pricing like hernia repair that might be needed.  

> Baja Bariatrics does not require a deposit be made prior to arriving for surgery. They do request a money order/cashiers check be made out in the surgeons name and scanned/emailed to the coordinator.

> His coordinator, Omar, gets rave reviews as being very helpful and taking people around to shop and sight see etc. Omar is well known for going waaaay above what many expect from their coordinator. 

Tip: Most people tip their coordinators regardless of which surgeon they go to. I have heard that the usual tip is $100.00 (some tip more and some tip less) paid at the end of the trip. People also say to bring about $100.00 extra in small bills for incidentals and minor tipping of bell hops, housekeeping, waiters, room service, the wheelchair/cart person at the airport if you get one post op, the driver to and from the airport, etc.

> The package is all inclusive: 5 nights (pre-op you stay in the hospital if you arrive in the evening), 2 more nights in the Florence hospital, 2 nights in the Lucerna hotel. The hospital has a bed for your companion -not a cot or a lazy boy. Companion pays for their own meals.

> Very important tip: Plan on taking the money order or cash because the Mexican government adds a 16% surcharge to credit cards.

> Dr. Illan will do a skype conference with you to answer any questions you might have.

Hopefully this bit of information helps in your journey to find your surgeon, please feel free to contact me any time, if you have any questions that I can help with :)

You can add me on Facebook under Whitney Liveandlove or skype at whitneyfarmer.realtor

I'm also on my fitness pal app under whitneyfarmer.182

I had surgery April 1st, 2014 and an down 77.2lbs :)

There is also a Facebook page run completely by dr. illans previous patients that has been AMAZING help in my journey. it's called " Team illan "

Hi Kristine,

i have been trying to do research on Dr's as well and i read this post from you a few days ago and was really impressed with what you have to say about Dr. Illan, however yesterday i was reading a different post that said if you have any questions or concerns you cant speak directly to him that you have to go threw his assistant and that's the only person you talk to or have contact with prior to the surgery day and after. Not sure if this is accurate information or not. I see you said Dr. Illan will do a skype conference with you prior but what about after? If you ever need anything? Thank you for your time.

Who do I get into contact with setting up an appointment for surgery>?

Omar is the coordinator

619-623-5368

He is really good at answering his phone if not calling back quickly 😊

I had the sleeve surgery done w/ Dr. Oritz in Tijuana on Sep. 5 and have nothing but good things to report. All the Dr.'s and nurses spoke very good English so communication was never a problem and I was well taken care of the entire time. Dr. Ortiz would certainly be a good choice!