S.I. University Hospital

Hello , Has anyone out there had any experience with The Center for Surgical Treatment of Obesity at SIUH? I've been to a couple of meetings and an educational seminar so far and I am seriously considering Lap Band. I saw my internist and am getting the ball rolling. Due to GHi it will be a few months before I can have the surgery.The whole team at SIUH seem competent and very nice, answered all questions, but of course I would feel better if I personally knew of any people that have weight loss surgery there.So if anyone has first hand knowledge of this program I wopuld greatly appreciate it. Thank you

Hey Donna I had my surgery at SIUH on June 12 of this year and I am down 70 pounds so far. The office staff ther is excellent. Linda Merlino is the patient organizer and you will work very closely with her as you navigate the tons of specialist appointments you will have to schedule. They give you a list of Dr's when you go for the Orientation (which costs $150 cash out of pocket...no biggie). The list has a number of doctors under each specialty ( pulmonology, cardiology etc..) they work hand in hand with and that makes the whole process much easier. They follow up with you and keep on top of your specialists to ensure they receive all your results in a timely manner. The nurse practioner Lindes is a wonderful lady and believe me when I tell you she has the patience of a saint. I called her almost daily with one dumb question or another and she answered each completely. The surgeons there are excellent too. Dr's McMullen (female) and Nicastro( chief of trauma as well) are both very knowledgable and have performed thousands of surgeries. The hospital stay itself was OK. FOr lap band you are out the next day. I had some complications and had to stay a week. Sorry for going on so long. If you want to talk or have any other questions please feel free to email me. This surgery was the best thing I ever did for myself. Good luck to you in your journey.