Alvarado Bariatric Surgeons Bariatric Center

I think Dr. Clark is the Best. I am totally impressed with the care I received from his caring staff, too.They are truly top notch. Dr. Clark and his associate Dr. Wittgrove are the doctors that developed the procedure to do this procedure laproscopically. They are very interested in following up on you after your surgery.They also put together a monthly support group that has been a tremendous help.

I met Dr. Clark 4 days before my surgery. Since I live across the country, I had to wait until I arrived in San Diego to meet him. He was very nice ans answered all my questions. He was kind and compassionate and took his time explaining things so I was sure to understand. I felt I made the right decision is choosing him as my surgeon.

As far as his office goes, they are all very nice. It is sometimes hard to get someone on the phone right away because they are so busy but I always get a call back. If I call because I have a problem, they tell me what to do to alleviate it and then I get a nice call the next day asking if I feel better. They really put me at ease.

Aftercare is another big thing with Dr. Clark. He stresses that this is not a cure all, it is a tool and if we use it as we are supposed to, it will be an effective tool. He stresses the use of vitamins as a must and makes sure we have appointments for follow-up. His surgical competence and bedside manner are equally great. I was very happy with the experience.

Great. I would recommend him to anyone.
He came to see me every day including a Sunday
after I had surgery. He is very compassionate
and helpful in working with my
PCP after I came home - I flew from Alaska
and left San Diego with a drain and feeding
tube. I had a small leak into my chest
cavity for 5 weeks, so my PCP had
to work with Dr Clark closely to monitor
the leak. He e-mailed the x-rays to Dr Clark
for his expertise in the area and removed the
tubes after Dr Clark gave him the OK.

His staff put up with my calls of help on an
almost daily basis. Looking back I was depressed
and wanted someone to sympathize with me. At
times I would feel something new and it would
scare me, someone would always get back with
me very quickly and put my fears to rest.

If I had to pick I would put surgical competence
first; however I had both competence and great
bedside manner with Dr Clark.

The aftercare program is structrued with monthly
interviews by a nurse (over the phone) and
support groups.

On a scale of 1 - 10 Dr Clark is a 15

Prior to surgery I went to the free informational seminar. Dr Clark carefully went through all the how to's and what if's. He committed himself to stay until all questions where answered. I left with
all my questions, as well as all the questions of friends and family answered. On my pre-op day I met with Dr. Clark to review any questions or concerns prior to surgery. The clinic staff and hospital staff were wonderful and very kind. Do expect long waits in the clinic (at least that was the way it was for me 10/99). There are staff members who are former patients and can answer any question and give helpful advice. The post-op information and follow-up is excellent. My one compliant while in the hospital is that it took 9 hours to get my pain meds changed. Other than the pain med problem I was extremely well cared for in the hospital (thank you Tara and Rosemary). The nurses kept a very close watch over the few minor problems I had. With Dr. Clark I always felt I was in the hands of an excellent surgeon. I would recommend him to anyone.

I liked my Dr. right away. I had confidence in him and i feel i went to the best. I liked his staff to. I would recommend him again many times over. He is kind of expensive but worth it. After care is really important and he gives us out of towners a 800 number to keep in touch. I knew all the risk factors and he was great about using bloodless surgery for me. My overall rating would be excellent.

I was not too impressed with Dr. Clark as a
person, but he did make a fine surgeon.
Considering most of my contact was with the
staff, this really didn't cause me any
issues. I was really scared and nervous and
he just didn't put me at ease. The staff, on
the other hand, was simply wonderful. The
nurses, reception, and billing were all happy
to make sure that my experience would be a
positive as possible.
I think future patients should know that he
is quite skilled and continues to study the
affects of morbid obesity as an ongoing point
of interest. The after care isn't directed
by any one oarticular doctor but by the
clinic as a whole. They are in my area every
other month and I make sure I have an appoint-
ment. The risks of surgery were discussed
but I had done my own research for two years
before having the surgery. I think that
surgical competence in this case outweighs
bedside manner as there are plenty of other
people who more than make up for that.
I was disappointed in the 'early release'
that is pushed after the surgery. I was
able to stay an extra day in the hospital and
I felt that that was necessary for me as I
didn't have anyone assisting me once I left
the hospital. I like the staff's attempt to
be available by phone, but it is almost
always on a call back basis and you never
know when that might be. And of course,
all of this is my opinion of my experience
and should be taken as such.

I couldn't tell if I liked Dr. Clark at first or not. After meeting with him a few times I felt he was very caring and informative. The office staff was incredibly friendly and helpful towards getting insuance approval. Alverado may have one draw back, since Carnie Wilson had her sugery done there it has become "the place to go" and they are sort of busy.

The structured aftercare is so informative. Alverado Surgical Weight Center Loss prefers that you stay in the area for one week after you're released from the hospital just in case there are complications. The day before going home you have to attend a 3 hour seminar with a nutritionist. Your also given instructions on exersize and stretching, what to do and not to do. Your also given a dietary program that indicates when to indroduce new foods into your system but PROTIEN is always eaten first.

The risks of surgery were discussed with me several times by Dr. Clark but I was so desperate and determined at this point I wasn't even shaken by the stats. Surgical competence was the most important aspect in my book but it's nice to have competence and great bedside manner, LOL!

Dr. Clark, you and your staff are A#1!!!!

Dr. Clark, the quieter member of the Dynamic Duo of Clark and Whitgrove who operate at Alvarado Hospital in San Diego, is for the most part reserved upon your initial meeting. He does have a sense of humor--a little dry, but I can appriciate that. My overall impression is that he is more than competent and cares about his patients continued sucess--his concern does not end when they scrape you off the gurney into your hospital bed. I did a great deal of research and feel that it paid off. The surgical and anesthesiology staff were superb. As for Alvarado as a Hospital, I feel that they could have been more understanding of the unique stress of bariatric surgery (Except for Rosemary, the Nurses aid on the 6th floor, day shift-you'll hate her when she makes you take that first walk, but in the end, you'll love her). The night nursing staff left much to be desired. Dr. Clark's office staff has been wonderful--they talk you through your fears and concerns and never seem to get annoyed when you call them for the 20th time having a pre-op freak out. Overall, I a pleased that I chose Dr. Clark and would recommend him without reservation.

Great experience. He knew his stuff and helped me through the whole way. He was upbeat and positive. I felt confident in him.

Wonderful, the best