Information about Bismarck Drs and anything else?

Hello all. I will be moving to Bismarck in June, and need to find a bariatric dr. that month to get my 2 year labs drawn. Does anyone know of the closest one? Also, anything anyone can tell me about the area would be appreciated. I grew up in Minnesota and lived there until last summer when we moved to FL for the year. The economy tanked down here, so we are on our way back. I know it is cold, windy and flat, but whatelse? Are there things to do in the area, jobs available, good school system? Thanks in advance, and I guess since I will soon be a resident, I will be frequenting this board more often.

welcome back to the frozen tundra!

I've seen a lot of people use this guy:

http://www.obesityhelp.com/morbidobesity/bariatric+surgeon+p rofile+Brent+Bruderer+dct.html

sorry things didn't work out in Florida

judi

Hi....Welcome to North Dakota.  You may want to check with Dr. Brent Bruderer at Med Center One  Hospital in Bismarck.  He is wonderful.  He did my lap RNY November 19, 2009 there.
I live in Williston which is about 220 miles from Bismarck.  We are in Northwest ND.  You will find him and his staff very likable and accomadating.  If you have any other questions you may PM me.

Again, Welcome.

Sandy

Thank you both for your reply. You both recommended the same surgeon, so I may have to check if he will do follow up on a patient he didn't operate on. Some will, so won't. I am not looking forward to frozen tundra after living in paradise for a year. UGH.

 There's also Dr. Michael Schmit and Dr. Gaylord Kavlie with the St. Alexius/Primecare network.  Dr. Schmit did my surgery and I really liked him a lot.  A very kind man, soft spoken but knows his stuff.  I think Kavlie assisted with my surgery, but I've never met him, although I did speak to him on the phone one night when I was having some issues post-op and had to call the ER.  I was very impressed with his knowledge and his compassion on the phone, especially since my problem wasn't serious.  Went a long way in easing my peace of mind, and didn't make me feel like a hypochondriac!   

As for Bismarck... it's a nice city.  We live about an hour away from Bismarck, but my husband works there.  As for "things to do", it depends on what you like to do.... schools are good from what I hear from family and friends who live there.  And it's not THAT cold.... Fargo always seems to be colder!  In the summer it's actually quite nice, there's the river and that nice walking path; driving down River Road in the fall is beautiful... when we lived there, I always thought it was the best of both small town friendliness and just enough "city" for my comfort.

Economy-wise, from what I understand of such things, Bismarck is still doing okay.  For the past few years it's really been booming in terms of development.  North Dakota in general still hasn't been impacted "too" hard from the recession.  My husband works in an industry that is purely a "luxury" service and business has never been better, so maybe that's an indicator.  

Good luck with the move, and welcome back to the north!

Gretchen

Thanks Gretchen for the info about the town as well as the Dr. I appreciate it.

I have no clue about the medical staff in Bismarck

I can tell you that Bismarck has a nice mall, good garage sales, nice food places and a pretty nice food store. There are a couple second hand stores to fumble through and some bargins to be had. To the North of town is a shooting park for those into that sport (guess what we do in Bismarck) LOL. They usually try and set the world record of the most snow angels made at one time,each year. You could be in the world book! if you join in LOL

So far the economy has done well/stayed pretty much on track. I live in Fargo and have heard in Fargo we are like 3% unemployeed in our area, I would guess Bismarck would be around the same.

Wishing you well in your travels and welcome back to the tundra!! More bodies to keep us warm LOL

Hello Nicole!
Welcome to ND.  I live in Williston (N.W part) and I love going to Bismarck.  Dr. Schmit did my Gastric Sleeve Surgery on June 10th.  He also took my gallbladder out October 2008.  I really like him.  He is soft spoken, but a wonderful doctor.  I go back to see him for a post op appointment on June 23rd.  If I could I would move to Bismarck in a heart beat.  My husband works in the oilfield here and there is just no oil drilling in Bismarck.  I am going to still keep working on him to move there some day. 
Bismarck is not a hard city to get around in ( I don't think).
My surgery was done at St. Alexius Hospital and the staff there are wonderful too.
Good Luck on your move to Bismarck!  
littlewoman in Williston