Current Duke surgeons

My doctor recommended I check out Duke's bariatric team.  Has anyone had experience there?  Good or bad I want to hear it so I can be educated.  I realize no hospital/staff is going to be perfect, but I want the best place I can get in my area.  Has anyone heard of Nash County's bariatric team at their hospital?  Thoughts?  Suggestions?  Guidance?

Thanks!!

Amy

Hi Amy,

Duke has two facilities: Duke Durham and Duke Raleigh. 

Duke Durham - My husband and I had our surgeries at Duke Durham because it was the only facility available at the time. I used to know all of the surgeons at Duke Durham, now I just know Dr. Dana Portenier. I run a large support group in North Raleigh and have heard very positive things about Dr. Ranjan Sudan and Dr. Torquati. I am sure that the rest of their surgical team is just as talented.  I cannot say enough good things about Hillary Blackwood, the RNP that I work with... She is PHENOMONAL!I really like psych team: Dr's Applegate and Friedman. I have met the RD a couple of times, but have not worked with her. The RD that I worked with is no longer with the program, but I can say that whenever I had a question I was able to call and get an answer and I would think that would still be the case. I have to say that I was and still am pleased with the medical care and support we have received at Duke Durham. While they have a huge program, I must say that I have felt a personal connection with my medical team. They 'know' who we are and are genuinely interested in our welfare. I have to say that the bariatric ward at Duke Durham is phenomenal. We had some issues with the administrative front office, but being pro-active allowed us to manage those issues. I used to attend the monthly support group meetings at Duke Durham, but to be honest, they were rotating the same information each year... i.e., if it's January it's topic A, if it's February it's topic B. While those topics were informational the first year, they lost effectiveness for me as they were repeated. Also, when we had support group meetings, they were more instructional/seminar style with very little interactive time... maybe 10 to 15 minutes at the end to be able to talk with others who had gone before me. 

Duke Raleigh - Duke Raleigh is a newer, smaller, more intimate program. It is related to the Duke Durham program, but it is run somewhat differently and to be honest, I like it better. The Duke Raleigh program has two surgeons that work there. Dr Yin Joo heads this new program in Raleigh. This program is smaller, and therefore, more intimate. I absolutely love the personal touch that comes with the Bariatric Coordinator that they have at the Duke Raleigh facility. She coordinates the support groups and they have a very different feel; the first half is informational, the second half is open Q&A/discussion and I really like that. I have not 'worked' with their dieticians and psych team, but have seen and talked with them at support group meetings. I have found them all to be warm and open. I really like the smaller office, very personal touch that I find in this office. I also have not heard of people having the administrative, front office frustrations with this office. I'm not really sure what the difference is since I'm not in the midst of having to navigate the pre-op process anymore.

To be frank, I don't think that you could go wrong. Duke performs the four most common surgeries now and is even doing some things that are innovative.  I think that the plus to this is that you can really look at all of the surgery types available, the pros and cons to each, and then with the help of your medical team, select a surgery that is best for your personal health and lifestyle requirements.

Wishing you all the best... no matter which program you consider. 

 I have just started out with the Duke team in Durham and so far I like them!

 Amy-  I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the Durham team.  My Dr was fabulous, his nurse is top notch and the staff at the hospital were incredible.  I can't say enough about the hospital staff, they were welcoming, kind and everyone made sure that I knew how thankful they were to have me there.  I stayed an extra day because I live 3 hours from there and they were wonderful.  Good luck in your journey!

I'm seeing Dr. Yoo in the Duke Raleigh office. The staff is super nice. My whole process seemed to go really quick too! If I have a question and call them they will call me back with an answer usually the same day or they find someone who has the answer for me. I was annoyed that they had me to waste time at a different office to get the edg scope or whatever its called. When that office gave me difficulities I called Dr. Yoo's office back and asked to be switched to a Duke office. The duke office got me in with no troubles and no consult since they already had my info and stuff on file.

Good luck!