Cahaba Valley Surgical Group, PC Bariatric Center

I met Dr. Vince Gardner and his staff for the first time on March 22, 2006 I like him, and his staff very much. Sherryl Coleman, his nurse was as sweet as she could be. They showed me and my husband a 15 minute VCR tape. Then I was taken to an exam room where they took 2 pictures of me front and side view shots, weighed me, took my blood pressure, and temp. Dr. Vince Gardner answered all of mine and my husband's question's about the surgery. He said laproscopic gastric bypass would be a good way for me to go. I am just waiting now to finish up my 6 months of supervised weight loss dieting under my physicians care. I am so excited yall!

My first impression was that he looked really young. But Dr. Gardner knows what he is doing. The office staff was great including Miles. He was there whenI needed info. Dr. gardner always emphasizes that this is a tool and not something to just get skinny. Dr.Gardner is very strict with his after care. He wants you to follow his orders to the tee. He went over everything thing about the surgery He told you all of the pro's and con's of them all and the risks that happen. But i would have dr.gardner do my sugery a 100 times over. I rate him a 10. His bedside manner is great. He sat there and talked to us and never rushed. I love him and his staff.

Well I have to say that my first impression of Dr. Gardner was that he was young. But when he came in and introduced himself and got started talking to me and my mother I thought he was good at what he does. The office staff was very friendly. I have called there many times and Miles and Sheyrll are really nice and helpfull. I can't say anything bad about Dr. Gardner or his staff. If you should choose Dr Gardner for your surgeon you should know that he emphasizes after care and yuo being compliant with your tool. He also emphasizes that this surgery is not a cosmetic surgery and that this surgery is performed so that you can better your health. i do not know if he has a aftercare program yet but when I meet with him again I will find out. Dr.Gardner went over every risk of the surgery and the bennefits of the surgery. Dr. Gardner has a great bedside manner and I believe his surgical competence is great. If I had to rate Dr. Gardner I would give him a 9.

'Wonderful man who explained the procedure in detail and answered all questions I had. He has a great office staff who has always answered any questions I had ... be it insurance or questions after surgery. Dr. Sherer is upfront and tells you like it is. I was hoping to have my surgery laproscopic but due to previous surgeries he said it would be best to have open. Also

I am going to keep this short and simple. This is the most AMAZING man next to GOD. He gave me a second life and I love him for that. I have never in my life been so comfortable with a doctor in my life until I found him. I would stand on a mountain and shout his name for recommendations if I could. He made me feel comfortbable from day one.

He was kind to me, and didn't look at me as another fat girl. He made me comfortable from the moment we met. The office is nice, and his staff was very friendly and helpful. I do wish there had been more information passed out pre-op about everything, like supplements, diet, and exercise. Dr. Sherer is just an all around great guy. There isn't an aftercare program that I am aware of with this hospital/doctor. I wish there had been though. He made me very aware of the risks, and even shared his pesonal morbidity rate with me. I give him a 98 out of 100! Personally, I believe competence and bedside manner are both great. I don't see someone with poor bedside manner as a competent surgeon since he/she cannot make the patient comfortable.

He is an excellent surgeon. I did a lot of research and was informed that he was one of the best surgeons in the whole south. I am so glad that I chose him as my doctor. During surgery there was a problem with my stomach. My stomach was adhered to my diaphram and he got it unstuck. It took surgery 2 hours more than planned. He did a wonderful job and took his time even though he had several more surgeries to do that day.

I was very impressed when I first met Dr. Sherer. He was a man of God and thats what I liked about him. My impression hasn't changed. He seems to have passion about his job and his patients and that really made me at ease. He set forth everything with a videotape explaining the provedure and then followed up with answering any questions you may have. I would highly recommend him in the future.

Very kind man that prayed and asked GOD to guide his hands and help me recover quickly after surgery

Original Surgeon: Dr. Rex Sherer
First impression: An silver-haired Dana Carvey. Great personality, connected with me very well, answered all my questions. The staff was very helpful and very apologetic after they made one big mistake. They didn't think they had my new phone number, although their scheduler had called me a few days earlier. Because of this, the office didn't call me to cancel my re-evaluation appointment the day it was scheduled, which was also a day the doc had to leave the office for an emergency. I ended up driving all the way to Birmingham from Huntsville, only to have to reschedule for a week later. However, the staff was very sweet and apologetic. We simply used it as a nice day trip.

Dr. Sherer was very clear in stressing the risks of the surgery. He has created a short DVD film which you're required to view upon your first consultation. The film is approximately 45 minutes long and extremely informative. I'm going into this thoroughly informed, not only from the DVD, the information received from the doc, and the info I've gotten here on Obesityhelp.com, but I've also gained a ton of knowledge from the WLS support group I attend each month. I'm totally jazzed and ready to begin my new life.

The only thing negative I could say about Dr. Sherer is in regard to his decision to remove the inner grandular of my trach tube. This caused me a few breathing problems after being discharged, due to the trach getting stopped up with mucus plugs. However, once this was cleaned out at my local hospital, another inner grandular was inserted, and I had no other difficulties. I can't say that removing the grandular would be something that would cause problems for everyone. This was simply the case in my situation.

The doctor's aftercare program was structured without being oppressive and I must give him an overall rating of excellent. He's truly an amazing surgeon. His Christian ethic is, in my belief, what made all the difference in my outcome. He's anchored in his faith and has such a kind, compassionate, uplifting bedside manner, that its impossible to feel down after he's left your side. I'm blessed to have found him, and encourage all others thinking of having bariatric surgery in the Birmingham area to seek out Dr. Sherer and his colleagues at Cahaba Valley Surgical in Alabaster.