Chicago Institute of Minimally Invasive Surgery Bariatric Center
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Dr. Frantzides is a very skilled surgeon. He requested multiple pre-surgical tests and procedures to ensure that I was a good candidate for the lap RNY, and I underwent the procedure with no complications thus far. He kept my family members informed of my surgery status, and was available for questions both pre and post operatively.
Dr. Franzides' bariatric coordinator, Karen Thomas, MS, RN, CCRN, is wonderful! Karen was always available to answer questions and help with any issues regarding insurance requirements or procedure related questions via phone or email. Dr. Frantzides' fellow, John Zografakis, MD, was a very personable and reassuring presence at the pre-op appt and in the hospital, and helped calm my fears of what post-op life looked like.
Dr. Frantzides and his staff also strongly emphasized the importance of after care, and provided a great deal of written and verbal information regarding what post RNY life would look like.
My impression of Dr. Frantzides is that he reminds me of one of my late bosses. Both men knew exactly what they were doing clinically but their personality left something to be desired. This may not be exactly the best discription but I will try and elaborate. Like I said, they knew their stuff clinically which is why I felt comfortable have Dr. Frantzides as my surgeon. Just like I knew with my boss, he knew what needed to be done and the best way to do it and was the best at it. Unfortunately, I think they also know they are the best and it tends to go to their heads somewhat. Dr. Frantzides was always kind and polite to me and seemed interested in what and why I was there but there also seemed to be a sense of "I'm the greatest surgeon in the world" syndrome. This may rub some people the wrong way but like I said, he knew what he was doing and this was more important to me so I was able to look past this.
Dr. Frantzides also has an assistant, Dr. John who's last name starts with a Z and I cannot remember or pronounce. Dr. John is wonderful. What Dr. Frantzides lacks in "personality" Dr. John makes up for. He has a wonderful bed side manner and I am sure he is working with the best surgeon.His surgical skills are also excellent otherwise, why would he be working with Dr. Frantzides. I see Dr. John every time I go in to see Dr. Frantzides and he still makes me feel good and comfortable with what I have done. Dr. Frantzides is very lucky to have such a great doctor for an assistant, he certainly compliments Dr. Frantzides surgical skills with his personality. Let me make this also clear, Dr. Frantzides never actually said or did anything "bad" it is just a feeling I get when I meet with him. I believe we referred to it as surgical arrogance. Dr. Frantzides is a kind and good person but just may have a big head.
As far as his office staff goes, Karen, Dr. Frantzides nurse is wonderful. She stopped in every day in the hospital to see me and sat down for some time and discussed my new lifestyle changes. Each time I go for follow up I meet with her and we discuss my eating, changes, things to try etc. She has been through this herself so it is helpful to have her to ask questions. As far as his office staff, they leave something to be desired. As I said, I work in a surgeons office so I know how it is. Not that you are expected to remember each patient and when or if they had their surgery but you would hope that she would remember something. When trying to get my insurance authorization, I had to call her dozens of times to get the info to the insurance company. She said she was faxing it but it never seemed to get their. After surgery I was having a problem with getting my pre-ops paid by my insurance and after calling and trying to get the information for 3 months I finally called the insurance and begged them to help me. I got lucky and got in touch with someone at the insurance who took 5 minutes of his time to see that they had paid for my surgery and should have paid for my pre-ops and he managed to get them reprocessed and paid. Dr. Frantzides office is also friendly and polite but it really bothered me each time I called I would have to remind her who I was and what I wanted. You would think that after I called her weekly for 3 months she would remember me.
My overall opinion of my surgey is taht I had the best team of professionals doing my surgery and handling my care. I am fortunate to be healthy and not have any medical problems prior to, during or after surgery(so far). I have referred other people to Dr. Frantzides and have explained my feeling to them. I would refer anyone who is considering this surgery to see Dr. Frantzides because like I said, I believe he has the best clinical skills and a wonderful assistant and nurse to help him. My experience at Evanston Hospital was great. I was somewhat leary at first about going there because I had heard some bad things but I have absolutely no complaints. In fact they treated me better than I expected anywhere. The nurses were friendly, kind and took time to listen to me complain and were very attentive to my needs.
In my opinion it is equally important to have excellent surgical competence and a good bed side manner. Dr. Frantzides and Dr. John have both and compliment each others skills. What may be one's weak point is the other strong point.
My first impression was wow. He's great. Very friendly professional. I felt comfortable right away with him. His office and staff are wonderful Karen the nurse was great. She even did a little dance when I got my surgery date. THey are available 24 hours a day, and hold seminars a couple times a month to give his patients the support and information that they need. Dr Frantzidies was vbery honest about the risk with the surgery. I got very sick right before my first date and was very honest about the risk.
My first impression of Dr. Frantzides was PROFESSIONAL! I am in the healthcare field and felt that Dr. Frantzides and Dr. John were both excellent communicators and were very willing to answer all your questions. Kathleen and Karen were wonderful in the preop stages. Have not gone for a postop visit yet. Dr. Frantzides was very open and honest about risks and benefits of this surgery, but at the same time made me feel very confident that he would be able to perform the surgery without any complications. Dr. Frantzides' and Dr. John's bedside manner are excellent. They listen to what you have to say, and are genuinely concerned about your issues. I had started out at another well known center, but was turned down by my insurance carrier at the time. Dr. F. was recommended to me by a fellow healthcare worker which is why I decided to change institutions. I have to say that the personal attention that was paid to me at Evanston and by Dr. F's staff far exceeded the attention I received at the other center. At this other center, I felt like just another number and was moved through the process like 'cattle'. But everything was different with Dr. F. I really felt that the staff cared about me and my fears, and that they made every attempt to make me feel comfortable with my questions and concerns before and after surgery. Thanks for reading my comments!
I first met Dr. Frantzides and Dr. Zografakis in June of 2003. They were very professional and personable. The staff was very pleasant and curtious. The day of my consultation, they explained the surgery, post-op and recovery in great detail. My pre-op weight was 414lbs, my height 6'5", and my BMI was 49.1. My RNY (LAP) was on August 26, 2003, and now 6 months later my weight is 269 lbs. and my BMI is 31.9. Both Dr. Frantzides and Dr. Zografakis had excellent bedside manners and their surgical competence was excellent because I had no problems after surgery. The scars from surgery are practically invisible. I would highly recommend Dr. Frantzides and his staff.
My first impression of Dr. Frantzides,was very intellegent & well spoken person.
My impression of him has never changed. It has gotten to be one of the most delightful
feeling that I have ever had with any of my
doctors that I'd had in 30 years.
His offfice staff is very professional, and
very kind, heart warming and caring.
If you are thinking about having gastric bypass surgery, he would be the right choice.
He came right out to the point and told me
exactly what the risks where and all the side
effects. And that is very important to know.
I would rate Dr. Frantzides with a #10.
I think both are great, bedside manner &
surgical competence.
When I first visited Dr. Frantzides it was Nov. of 02, he walked into the room and looked at me up and down for a few minutes without saying a word and then steped back and said "I'm going to give you your life back" I was so shocked but at the same time I thought in my head this guy is crazy. Never would I have thought this would come true. Dr. Frantzides and his staff are incredible! I went into this very frightned and scared but he was very reassuring. The surgery was a complete success, in Jan. of 03 I had the surgery at 600lbs and now I am 1 year post surgery and I am proud to say that I am 285lbs!!!!! Thank You!!!!!
My first impression of Dr. Frantzides was that he was someone who was direct and not afraid to answer my questions, someof which were rather pointed. He is a gentleman and handled the responses appropriately and me well. He is a responsive person and said all the right things. I had been rejected by 3 other doctors and when he said that he would do the surgery, it was like a dream come true. I couldn't believe that I received a decision that very day after dealing with other people who had to discuss it in a meeting. His decisiveness was a turning point for me. That was and is exactly the kind of physician I look for. He will also take as much time with you as needed.
Aftercare is very important and he emphasizes that. Support groups are available and so is his nurse who has been through this experience. She is very nice and answers questions easily. She can also be paged. Her name is Karen Thomas.
He emphasizes the importance of follow-up visits and they really are. I have had my first couple. They really are important.
When we spoke about the risks of surgery, he told me what I had felt all along and that it was less risky for him to do the surgery than it was for me to go on as I was. I told him that someone else told me that I was going to die. He assured me that wasn't going to happen. As you can see, he was right.
I went through a lot to get to Dr. Frantzides and his staff. I started my journey four years ago and it finally ended in August 2003. I saw physicians at Northwestern University, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and the University of Chicago.
I really was ready to give up several times and were it not for a doctor named Mick Meiselman, with whom I consulted about all these surgeries, I would never have met Dr. Frantzides. I also owe a debt of gratitude to Dr. Todd Newberger who has stuck with me through all the ups and downs of which there were many. He was the one who initially suggested this type of surgery and together we investigated it. Dr. Mick Meiselman knew of my struggle and in May of 2003 told me that he had a surgeon for me. He was right. He certainly did.
No one could have done this except Dr. Frantzides. His surgical competence is without question. I know what a difficult patient I am and the health problems that I presented to him. He didn't even blink. All of the others were a little afreaid of the challanges I presented. He treated my problems as if they were an every day occurrence, which is very comforting.
I know that no one is perfect, however, this man gave me back my life. If you want to know specifics, then please contact me.
There is one thing I will say, when you have an appointment, don't be in a hurry. It can be awhile. Just bring a good book or magazine. :-)
As a result of being BLESSED and HIGHLY FAVORED by GOD, I prayed that the Lord would give me a competent, God Fearing Doctor who would help deliver me from the pain and suffering of Morbid Obesity.
On June 26, 2003 God answered my prayer and led me to THE WEIGHT LOSS MESSIAH,
Dr. Constantine Frantzides and his productive, wonderful staff.
My story about the problems of being morbidly Obese is like so many others.
I have suffered, suffered, and yes suffered while living in this Anti-Fat Society.
On March 7, 1996 at 3:57 p.m., I lost my father who was 5'9 weighing in at 412 pounds as a result of complications associated with Morbid Obesity. I can re-call several of the supervised diet plans that my father tried and failed. What is sad is that when he wanted to try The Weight Loss Surgery, his insurance would only allow him to select from a few surgeons. I can remember my father with tears in his eyes telling me that he went for the consultation with the surgeon. The referred Surgeon informed my dad that if he tried to perform surgery on him at 412 pounds, that my father would bleed to death by the time he cut through the fat to reach his stomach. My father died before being able to lose the necessary 50 pounds, required by the surgeon. Diets didn't work for my father in the past, however he worked long and hard to meet the weight loss requirements from the Surgeon, hoping that the surgery would give him a second chance at life. I was left depressed and scared after the death of my father, because I was also Morbidly Obese faced with the same medical problems my father had, only weighing more.
However, on 1-7-04, Standing 5'6, weighing in at 430 pounds, God allowed Dr. Frantzides, to successfully perform Lap/Gastric Bypass surgery on me with the help of his assitance (MY SUPER HERO),
Dr John G.Zografakis and my
(GUARDIAN ANGEL, Karen Thomas(R.N.) who were very, very supportive.
I only keep LOVE in my HEART and RESPECT in my Soul for the many Caring individuals who helped me along this Surgical Procedure.
On 1-16-04 when I went to my first Post-OP visit I discovered that after only 8 days I lost 25 pounds with no complications.
I knew that this was just God showing me that Dr. Frantzides was a Special Gift that I received, and all would be well!
I realized that while I might not have been physically fit, I have been Spritually fit for a very long time. I believe in God, and I know that when God allows a Man such as
Dr. Frantzides to take what Society has labeled as an "UGLY DUCKLING", and transform them into a "BEAUTIFAL SWAN", this Powerful Man has to be working for God.
I think anyone considering this surgical procedure should be Spritually ready, willing, and able to PRAY UNTIL SOMETHING HAPPENS (P.U.S.H.). GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS.
