Question:
Is it just me, or has anybody else notice how many doctors are now performing WLS

Living in New York, and being use to having access to many of the top doctors & hospital is something I cherish. I however have noticed an influx of doctors who now perform WLS in my area. My concern is that while some of these doctors may have knowledge of the procedure; how many of them are equipped for the aftercare that WLS patients require. With insurance companies now willing to pay for WLS, my concern is that more doctors will do this procedure, as a way to earn addition income and not have the resource needed to see their patients through. Any thought?    — AB B. (posted on February 26, 2003)


February 26, 2003
AB, I hear ya, I live in NYC and had my surgery done @ Lenox Hill by Dr Leitman, I worry so much when I read abput others on this site who have had so many problems, I sometimes wonder why people chose the people they choice. It blows my mine that there is ofen no "after care" or support groups sponsered by dtrs. Just my 2cents. Heather (Open RNY 8/15 - 305/150/210)
   — heathercross

February 26, 2003
I have noticed the same thing, and it worries me. In my area there were very few choices, and none that I really felt comfortable with. I chose the BTC because of their total program. My daughters also had the surgery at the BTC and we were all very pleased with the entire experience. In this case...experience and skill are very important.
   — Lynda D.

February 26, 2003
I went to the BTC it is all they do. I wouldn't go to my dentist to have a baby.People should really research the doctor and place they plan on having it done, after care is so important.
   — domestic G.

February 26, 2003
I agree with you as well...there is a group in the Austin area advertising that they are the only Dr's in the Austin, Tx area doing the Lap-Band. Well I had already decided I wanted the Roux-n-Y but called out of curiosity. Out of the group of 10-12 surgeon's they had done "about 10" and had NO aftercare program whatsoever...nor did they have a nutritionist that worked with you. I told them, "THANX, BUT NO THANX!!!"
   — DELINDA T.

February 26, 2003
There was no question that I was going to have my surgeon done at one of the top hospitals in the country (Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania). Luckily I live close to it (15 miles away). <p> I am sure that BTC does a good job. I just felt more comfortable with a top-notch surgeon and a top-notch hospital. HUP does quite a number of bariatric surgeries and has done them for awhile, so they are well versed in taking care of bariatric patients. Drs. Raper & Williams (I had Dr. Raper and my wife will have Dr. Williams) have an excellent program with not one by two bariatric nutritionists on staff. We have two live support groups - one for everyone and one for 'graduates' (7+ months post-op) and have a yahoogroups.com online support group with over 150 members. <p> I have no hesitation about recommending either one of these surgeons to HUP. Neither does my PCP since he has seen such positive results from me...JR (open RNY 07/17 -152 pounds)
   — John Rushton

February 26, 2003
Tip[s to pick a surgeon, do they have a support group? MO friendly chairs in the office? References here? How many have they done? AFTERCARE? Talk to other patients too.
   — bob-haller

February 26, 2003
I agree that there is an influx of new Dr.'s, I think it is great, I think that there should be more, it would decrease the time everyone has to wait to get it done. i wouldn't worry about Dr.'s doing this for profit, you would be shocked what Dr.'s make these days after malpractice insurance is paid, after employes are paid along with all the other overhead. As a nurse I can tell you that any Dr. who gets income primarily from insurance isn't living as high on the hog as people think. I think anyone going into medcine these days has a genuine intrest in helping the patient, yes there are exceptions to every rule, but I wish more Dr.'s would get involved in WLS.
   — Sarah S.

February 26, 2003
AB, I agree with you. I work in Chicago with LOTS of doctors readily at hand. I see more and more doctors popping out of the woodwork doing this procedure. It scares me to death. Unlike Sarah, I believe there are plenty of doctors who are 'jumping on the bandwagon'. Now, don't misunderstand, I do not think every doctor who is new to this is doing it for the money...but many appear to be trying to make a buck off of the obese. I do not see it as any different than those who are willing to give a pill and no aftercare either. No matter what method of weightloss is chosen, a program is needed.
   — Diane S.

February 26, 2003
I wonder if a lot more surgeons are doing this surgery, or they had the capability, and the demand for the surgery is growing. When I first heard about weight loss surgery, it was a story on TV about a mom and daughter who were really heavy, and each had the surgery. At the time, I never considered it for myself. Several years, and several more attempts at dieting, I decided to seriously look into WLS. I found there were several doctors in my network that had been doing the surgery for some time. I thought there were only two. They were general surgeons, and the one I wound up going to has been doing many laproscopic procedures for years, RNY being just one of them. Now he has two associates who are doing them, and they do mostly WLS, to the point the hospital system has set up a bariatric center in a brand new building just for them. Since they have been doing this for some time, the statistics looked great, the process to have surgery was set up, and the aftercare was in place. In fact, a company came to one of the support group meetings to shoot film for an instruction video for other bariatric centers showing how to put together an after care program and support group! I just didn't know all of this was out there. I do agree there are some who are jumping on the bandwagon, but I also agree there are a lot more who find a lot of satisfaction in doing this type of surgery and seeing the success of their patients and the positive impact on their lives and health. Also, the poster who spoke of reimbursement is correct - what they get paid is a far cry from what the insurance company pays, but that is what they agree to when they sign contracts with insurance companies.
   — koogy




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