International Metabolic Bariatric Center Bariatric Center

I remember how important reading these reviews were to me, so I'll try and be as thorough as possible. I decided on Dr. Kelly b/c a family friend had used him (along with several people from her church) and the reviews from those patients were all good and their results spoke for themselves! My niece and I decided to get sleeved together. She had already started the preliminary conversations with Dr. Kelly's coordinator (Lora) and when I decided to join her, I sort of took over that part. (I work in healthcare and my niece felt comfortable with me handling the details.) After emailing Lora and telling her I was interested, she emailed me some forms to be completed and sent back. The forms focused on my medical history, etc. and after the doctor reviewed them, I received an email that Dr. Kelly would do my surgery. We decided on a date that was just a few weeks from my initial email. I was told when to make flight arrangements, payment info, etc. so I got everything ready.

I didn't hear much from them until about a week before the procedure. (That's not a bad thing. I didn't need to hear from them.) They sent a contract that explained payment requirements explained earlier and just a basic agreement. The only surprise was for my niece. In her contract there was an extra $500 charge because her BMI was between 45-50. The charge made sense (it's a longer surgery and requires longer use of the OR, etc.) but she hadn't been told beforehand so it was a shock. In the end, they didn't make her pay it. Our coordinator was on medical leave and the doctor's wife had taken over the administrative details in her absence. She doesn't speak English, so there were a few glitches in the paperwork. None of it was a big deal and when I pointed out the mistakes, they were quick to correct them.
Even though surgery was on Saturday (and we were told to arrive before 12:00 on surgery day) we chose to fly in Friday night so we wouldn't be rushed the day of surgery. (Plus it was cheaper!) We got an inexpensive hotel close to the airport and the driver picked us up there instead of the airport. (Keep in mind, when they give you a time that you're going to be picked up, it's an approximate time. I think part of that is cultural and part of it is the inability to know exactly how long it will take to fight traffic, get across the border, etc.) Our driver picked us up to take us to the hospital. (He even stopped at a Starbucks for my husband, our travel companion, b/c he needed the caffeine and wasn't sure what the day would hold for him!) Crossing the border was easy. We didn't need to show passports or anything. We just had to get all of our stuff out of the van and enter a small building (on the American side) where our bags were x-rayed and then exit the other side (Mexico side) and go to a small outside waiting area. It took about 15 minutes for our van to pick us up. We reloaded our bags and were off to Nova Hospital about 5 minutes away from the border.

About Nova: Let me digress a minute and talk about the hospital. First of all, it is nothing to look at. It's sort of wedged between other offices and has more of a "back-alley" look than I was expecting. I just had faith that everything would be ok and tried not to judge it by its appearance. There were also a few practices that were questionable, and maybe because I work in healthcare I was more critical. I thought the pre-op area was very clean and everyone that came in used hand sanitizer; however, their lack of gloves when handling blood concerned me (as much for them as me.) Also, a discarded needle from the blood draw had fallen on the floor and stayed there for quite a while. I finally asked someone to pick it up and throw it away. With that said, I think we received excellent care. The nurses could not have been more attentive or accommodating of our requests. The language barrier was an issue at times, but we muddled our way through it. (Charades anyone?)

Back to my story: Upon arriving at the hospital, we were ushered up to a waiting room where we waited about 10 minutes for them to take us into the intake room. Someone there filled out some forms, made our hospital bracelets, etc. The person who helped us was new and didn't speak any English, so it went pretty slow; however, another girl in the office spoke English pretty well and came to help when needed. Both ladies were very nice. It just helped to have a lot of patience. :)

After getting admitted, my niece and I were weighed and taken to a pre-op area. Our time there included a chest xray, ECG, blood work, IV started, talking with a cardiologist, and then we met briefly with Dr. Kelly. My niece was the first to go in and it didn't seem like any time they were done with her. Dr. Kelly came and talked to me about her procedure and how well it went before they pushed me back to the OR. I remember transferring onto the OR table and them strapping my arms down before I was out.

I woke up in our room (my niece and I shared a room) and felt ok. I was uncomfortable, but didn't hurt. My niece (who had never had anesthesia before) had a lot of nausea for the first 12 hours. My discomfort was from the gas they used to blow up my stomach. Just a general feeling of blah, with tightness in my back and shoulder. I used the gas x strips that everyone recommended and asked for ice packs for my stomach. (I don't see that mentioned on the forum much, but they helped me immensely.) After the first 12 hours, we felt pretty good. The rest of our time in the hospital (until Monday morning) was spent resting, sleeping on and off, walking the hall, reading, etc. We joked a couple of times that we were bored and wished we had brought some cards or something. We had an IV the whole time, so didn't need to eat or drink anything. Monday morning they discharged us from the hospital. Before they discharged us, they gave us our post-op instructions including medicine (antibiotic, pain pills, omeprazole, gauze and bandages, etc.) our medical records, a return to work note, labs, and chest xray. After that Cecy (Dr. Kelly's wife) drove us to Angeles hospital for our swallow tests (Dr. Kelly met us over there.) Angeles was a nice hospital. Knowing what we know now, we would have asked if we could have gone there instead of Nova (assuming it wasn't cost prohibitive.) We also got a copy of our leak tests to give our physicians at home. (Both my niece and I will receive follow-up from our primary care physician at home, so I asked for copies of everything. We also asked for and received an itemized bill in English in US Dollars for our flexible spending account, as we're requesting reimbursement. As with the earlier paperwork, there were mistakes, but when we pointed them out they were quick to correct them and get the back to us.) There was also a weird incidence on the first day where someone approached my husband with a bill for $35/each for our chest x-rays. My husband said that he didn't think we owed it, that it was part of Dr. Kelly's fee. He said he would talk with Dr. Kelly and get back to them. When we mentioned it to Dr Kelly, he said for us not to worry about it, that it was part of the fee we'd paid him. I don't think anyone was out to deceive us, but that they didn't understand the process.

From there, Dr. Kelly and Cecy took us to check into our hotel. We were supposed to stay at the Lucerna, but we stayed at the Ticuan instead. (Lucerna was full?) Regardless, Ticuan was nice and in the heart of the shopping district so we were excited. We walked several blocks looking in shops that had great souvenirs, tequila, silver, etc. I got a beautiful knock-off Hermes purse for $60. :) (I may have been there for surgery, but I have my priorities.) Even after doing all that walking, we felt good.

We went to dinner about 8:00 in the hotel restaurant and Dr. Kelly, his wife, and their son joined us. Their son (about 8 or 9) is awesome and even performed one of his martial art katas for us. We gave Dr. Kelly a small bottle of Don Julio tequila as a thank you gift for taking such good care of us. My niece and I had chicken broth (about 1/2 a bowl) which was the first "food" we had had since Friday. They were great dinner companions and I enjoyed hearing Dr, Kelly's stories and opinions about WLS and his bariatric surgeon colleagues both in the US and Mexico.

The next morning our driver picked us up and we crossed the border using the medical express lane. (The whole thing took about 25-30 minutes.) My husband and I showed our passports and my niece used her driver's license and birth certificate to get back across. (I was worried about her not having a passport, but she assured me it would be ok.) Our border agent was really nice and funny and we didn't have any issues. We drove about 5 minutes to the airport and the driver dropped us off at our terminal.

I'm sorry this post is so long, but I wanted to be as thorough as possible. I feel like I owe it to the ones before me to share as much as I can. Oh! I almost forgot! The morning I was discharged, they were picking up another patient. She happened to be someone I connected with on this forum so they brought her to my room to meet me! It was great meeting someone from the forum (and her daughter) in person!

Dr Ramos-Kelly is a wonderful Surgeon.

Had surgery with him and his team at the Hospital Nova on 17 Oct 2013. Best of care. Amazingly thorough followup and great bedside care.
Leak test at Hospital Angeles, where the Dr. has an office, then two recovery and followup days at the nearby Hotel Lucerna.

To me, Dr Kelly was absolutely worth the extra money I paid over other surgeons. I have had no surgeons in the US that I have dealt with that had more care and concern for his patients than Dr Kelly.

I would heartily recommend him to anyone interested in VSG.

I recently had my VSG done by Dr Kelly on June 19, 2013, and I am completly satisfied with my choice in surgon and with my surgery. I am a critical care nurse, that being said we are usually a very controling group when it comes to the care that we recieve. I am very sure the nurses were happy to see me go lol as I woudn't let them do a lot of stuff, as I did it myself. I requested all my proceedure information and results (surgical note, blood work, CXR, etc) and recieved it before I left. I know that he recently swithced hospitals and is now working out of Hospital Nova. It is an older hospital but has everything that you would need if an emergancy were to occur. The nurses there did not speak english but generally there was someone there that could help you out with translations, and I also used my phone/tablet and used a ap for english to spanish translation which helped out tones.
I have recomended Dr Kelly to many of my friends as I find that he is an awesome surgon and does great work. He is a relaxed surgon which helps to ease any fears that you may have prior to your surgery. Yes going to Mexico is different, the care you recieve is the same!

I had my surgery with Dr. Kelly (allegedly) on March 14, 2013 at Oasis of Hope in Tijuana, Mexico. Do not use this surgeon if you are concerned about your aftercare or wish to receive copies of your actual medical reports.

Pros:
Nurses all attentive. Hospital clean. Doctor attentive during visit and good bedside manner.

Cons: Zero follow up or after care. Doctor will not answer phone calls or e-mails. Information supplied suggests that Dr. Kelly did not even perform my surgery but sub-contracted it out. I began asking for copies of my surgical report the day after surgery, and have asked via telephone and e-mail no less than 8 times with no response from the doctor. I am unable to get the necessary follow up care in the states from my PCP because this surgeon will not provide any report relative to the surgery or return calls or e-mails.

I must admit, his salespeople and facilitator were very attentive at the onset and through the surgery, but the remaining unanswered questions and the refusal/inability to provide the information necessary for appropriate after care would cause me not to recommend this surgeon to anyone.

Ok, I'm going to give every bit of my story in detail so grab a glass of water lol.

For those who would like the short version, the hospital was much better than expected (Florence/Oasis) with very nice rooms, there was an attending Dr there 24/7 and for Dr Kelly? You couldn't find a more talented, caring, warm surgeon anywhere. I was sleeved 11 day ago and post op have already lost 12lbs. Tijuana was amazing, forget the old notions of it being scary, it was awesome! Ok for the long version......

It all started around the first of March, 2013 when my friend (who just scheduled with Dr Kelly for May 16) mentioned you could get weight loss surgery in Tijuana for about 5k. I laughed so hard I almost spit out my drink and was like YAH RIGHT, I'll get right on that. After I went home I did a ton of research and a few days later I said, ok, if I'm still this heavy next year I will schedule the surgery, possibly in the states. I've been a medical professional for 15 years and had that old Tijuana reputation in my mind. After researching for hours, days on end I found Dr Kelly's profile. Hey, this guy is a member of FACS and the American Society for Bariatrics etc and had done a transplant surgery residency in the US. Really? 7,000 surgeries? Really? Well ok, I was impressed. $5500, REALLY? lol.......ok. I prayed and thought about it for a long time and looked at other surgeons. I read all the Dr Kelly gossip, about his unfortunate death and him leaving his coordinators behind. I can totally relate. I'm a midwife and deal with major complications that are not something I cause or can avoid. He operates on the most at risk population possible. Then I read that the bariatric surgery death rate was 1 in 400. I prayed about it and felt totally at peace. I looked at Dr Aceves and he seems wonderful also, but I just couldn't justify the extra $3,000 when Dr Kelly had as much as more experience........he just never split from his coordinators and had them drag him through the mud. One of the most respected midwives in this area lost a baby a few months ago, which of course tore her and the family a hole in their hearts that will never close. Thankfully we support talented midwives (she had taught and trained so many over the years) when something out of control happens, in MX I guess they drag you through the mud for years. In MX I'm sure that all Drs have deaths, there is no way that they have escaped the 1 in 400 statistic if they have done thousands of surgeries. It is just impossible. I talked to Lora a lot and even had Dr Kelly call me. I prayed some more and decided instead of waiting until I gained another 100 pounds in a year to just go ahead and go for it, so I scheduled for April 9th. I texted Lora constantly, she was always so sweet and helpful. She was a patient of Dr Kelly's also and doesn't get paid per patient, just a salary. I even tried to trick her once to see if she was really a coordinator and asked her if there were any other surgeons she might suggest. She said I had a lot of options but she had chosen Dr Kelly. I was relieved to know she really did just work for him (I'm a suspicious person lol).

The week before my scheduled surgery I started the pre-op diet. I had a higher BMI (50, 49.something at my actual surgery) so it was all liquids for me. Ugh.....terrible. Then on day 4 my husband developed pneumonia and my daughter caught the flu from him. Surgery cancelled. Lora was really nice and I rescheduled for April 22nd. Lucky me I got to do the preop diet again (I regained all the weight back from the 4 days before from pizza....i'm sick) and stuck to it the whole 7 days! I lost 11 lbs.

The day of surgery I picked my mom up super early and we headed for our 7 hours of flights to San Diego. I tried to buckle my seat belt and it wouldn't buckle. Oh my goodness. I had to ask the stewardess what to do and she discreetly handed me an extender. Nothing more reassuring you need WLS than not being able to fit into a pretty large seat belt on the plane. When I got to San Diego I received a text from Alina telling me Dr Kelly's wife would be there in about 10 minutes. I had to sit in the sunshine for 10 minutes, oh the horror. A gorgeous, sweet lady got out of a very nice 15 passenger van and introduced herself and grabbed my luggage. It was Dr Kelly's wife Cecy. On the way to the hospital she apologized for her English, it is ok. We communicated pretty well and she told me about the areas we were passing etc. It was neat. When I pulled up to the hospital I was impressed. From hearing about it I thought it might be a bit run down but it was very nice. I was taken to lab, xray, seen the attending Dr and the cardiologist all within about an hour. They took care of you but there was no waiting around until that was over. After that I was in my bed having a nervous breakdown and praying with my mom. I asked for something to calm me. They gave me something and it helped a little. When they came to get me the Anesthesiologist came in and introduced himself. Ooops........Dr Kelly had already been in twice. I forgot to mention that. He took his time and answered my zillion questions, what a kind caring man.

I got in the operating room and it looked much like the one I was in for my csections in the states. The anesthesiologist asked if I was ready and said slowly, ok ok bye bye and the next thing I realized I was waking up in my room. They had me in recovery for quite a while and I guess I was awake but it's all a blur. I was NAUSEOUS! I mean the kind of nausea you get when they twirl you in those things at the county fair that make you stick to your seat. They had given me a dose of Zofran already but it was awful. Dr Kelly ok'd it more often. Kudos to you that get up and walk. I couldn't because I would have fell over. I truly think it was a reaction to the anesthesia, I tend to be really sensitive to medications. It was the exact drugs they use in the states, (oh I checked) but people are different. I finally went to sleep and woke up about 11 hours later. This was the first time I asked for pain medicine. They gave it right away along with some Zofran. I had an IV with 5% dextrose so you won't get famished even though you aren't hungry. They don't use narcotic pain medicines unless you specifically really, really need them because you need to walk. I was given a strong IV NSAID and it worked lovely and controlled my pain. Yes, I was sore, I felt like someone punched me in the upper abdomen 100 times. The first day is definitely the hardest but you heal so quickly it is amazing. I've heard from some the nurses at Oasis speak English. Um, well, they speak enough to understand what you need and are very sweet but I met very few that were fluent. I used Google translate a few times with the free WiFi. There is an attending Dr there at all times and they all spoke English probably better than I do lol. Everyone went out of their way to be kind, and they cleaned the large room twice per day. My mother was very comfy with her twin size bed. She's about 5'2" and watching her lay there I figure someone 6ft or more would fit comfortably. It wasn't tiny and had drawers underneath. I also had a nice lil closet for my stuff. The hospital bedding is sooooooo warm and cozy, like a really thick comforter and all. Nice touch.

By day 2 I was feeling good and ready to roll! I met a lot of patients, all happy, except one who was happy with the surgery/hospital but was angry with the booking agent for switching/downgrading her hotel at the very last minute. I told her about booking directly with Lora and the Dr. By that time I was so ready for something to drink that I snuck about an ounce or two of apple juice. I'm just going to admit it, don't follow my mistakes. Alina stopped in with a very nice packet outlining your food each step of the way and which medicines (antibiotics, prilosec and pain) to take when. We went to Hospital Angeles because they have a new, super cool machine for leak tests that is better than the one at Florence/Oasis. It's definitely an upgrade you don't get unless you book with the Dr because otherwise it is the agencies taking care of your hospital arrangements etc and it is out of the Dr's hands. The stuff you drink tastes gross and Dr Kelly came running over with some juice for me so I could get the taste out of my mouth quickly. He is very thoughtful. We all took pics together in the lobby afterward.

Upon arrival at the Lucerna I was so excited. This isn't Hilton Nice, this is W nice. Huge hotel set up like Villas with a pool with a bridge over it, a courtyard with a fountain and fish etc. The broth was actually good, I was skeptical. We walked around the very safe area both days and felt like I was on vacation. I saw Dr Kelly everyday but the day I left (which is expected, seen him for 4 days). I rested and walked around, just had fun.

On the last day Cecy told me to be ready about 9am but our flight didn't leave until 1pm so I figured it was border issues. We actually flew through the medical lane and was in San Diego by 10am. She was taking my mom, a breast cancer survivor to the Cancer Survivor's Park as a surprise. How sweet. It is beautiful by the water. We stayed and then said our goodbyes at the airport and she told me she knew plastic surgeon's, dentists, etc and they drive from the airport multiple times per day so if I wanted to follow up with Dr Kelly and come back to TJ just let her know and she'd pick me up. They are very kind, warm people.

The flight home seemed like forever but it wasn't bad or painful. I'm 10 days post op today and have lost 22lbs already (11 preop and 11 post op). Oh, and the day I got to the Lucerna I weighed myself and I had gained back ALL the weight I lost preop. I kinda freaked but was told it was water. They were right! Don't fret.

I loved my experiences and wouldn't have changed it a bit! I've been blessed by God every step of the way, from finding and good surgeon and guiding his hands to healing me very quickly. I'm still paranoid about complications, but that is just me. So far, so awesome!

Feel free to PM me with any questions or just to say hi!!

Everyone wants to hear the negatives........so I'll have to come up with some. The traffic is TJ is nuts. Cecy is a good driver but I'm a horrible passenger and it is like NYC going 60mph. They test you for HIV at the hospital without your permission in your preop labs, as a medical professional in the states I thought this was crazy.....but I could really care less. I would bring extra juice in your suitcase, I brought gatorade bottles and the little 10 oz apple juicy juices because I wanted them for my room and didn't feel like walking to get them although I walked for everything else lol. I can't do artificial sweeteners so I brought my own Jello too, the kind you find on the regular shelves that doesn't melt when it is warm.. I think it is called Juicy Jels or something. That's all I can come up with lol.

My surgery was 4/4/13 with Dr Kelly, I had a wonderful experience! I initially delt with Lora Dr Kellys assistant who was great, she answered any questions promptly and proffesionally. My first contact with Dr Kelly was via telephone he spoke with me for 1 hr! and answered all my questions. My surgery was scheduled for a date that was best for me, I was picked up from the airport by Dr Kelly's lovely wife, she was so friendly, i went straight to the hospital oasis (which was very clean and comfortable) almost all of the nurses spoke english. Dr Kelly came to see me that evening and answered all of my questions. he was very accomodating I requested a sleeping pill as I did not think i would sleep! nothing was too much trouble. the day of surgery i went into the OR and before I knew it I was asleep! I woke up with a tiny amount of pain, but went off to sleep again and when I woke up it had gone. I had some problems with nausea & vomiting, but Dr Kelly fixed that by giving me IV anti-inflammatory meds. No problems after that. I was in the hospital for 2 days (the nurses were wonderful) Dr Kellys wife (cecy) took us to the hotel (lucerna lovely) and we settled in. close by is a lovely restaurant and we wandered over and I had my first taste of broth (it was delicious!) the next day Cecy took myself and my husband on a trip to the silver markets, I had so much energy I could have walked all day! cecy took us back to the hotel Dr Kelly had already checked on me and all was fine. the following day cecy took us to the airport and we came home. I am now 3 weeks post op, i have lost 20lbs and i have had no pain or nausea, I was so comfortable with my choice as Dr Kelly is such a kind caring man he put me totally at ease. I was a nurse in the UK so i am very critical and observant of hospital care and surgeons. I can't rate my experience high enough.. I would not hesitate to recommend Dr Kelly to anyone, I am so happy I chose him as my surgeon and he has enabled me to start living my life without my obsession with food.

Dr. Kelly is a very skilled and competent surgeon.He cares about all his patients and made sure all our needs were met.I was admitted on a Sunday evening and he was there to see me 20 minutes later to answer any questions I had about my VSG surgery the next day. His patient coordinator also came in that evening to see if we were doing OK and needed anything. He offered to take my friend out to eat so she wouldn't have to eat in the hospital cafeteria. She had already eaten in the cafeteria and the food was fine but he did take her and the other patients wife out to eat and enjoy the local restaurants for the next few days.
My surgery was Monday at 2 pm. All my blood test were done in the am along with a chest x ray and an EKG and visit from the cardiologist.My IV was started on the first try.All the hospital staff, doctors and nurses were excellent. On our wing of the hospital we had 2 nurses and a doctor on at all times. The 4 days I was there there were only us 2 patients on that wing.
Dr. Kelly was in twice a day to check on us.He always told us what to expect the next day and answered any questions I had. On day 3 we were discharged.We were given our discharge instructions and diet by Dr. Kelly's assistant and also meds to take with us and drinks and water for the hotel and then we were driven by Dr. Kelly's coordinator to another hospital to have our second leak test done( the first is done in the OR). Dr. Kelly met us there watched as our tests were done then it was off to our beautiful hotel where Dr. Kelly met us and made sure everything was taken care of. He then stayed and talked to all four of us for about an hour.He then came to check on us the next 2 days.On day 3 and 4 his coordinator drove us around and took us to dinner giving us a fantastic Tijuana experience. We patients of course were only allowed delicious broth. We were driven to the airport on our final day after this very positive experience.
I cannot say enough great things about Dr. Kelly. People who choose him have hit the 'best surgeon lottery'.He is a great surgeon and such a nice man. We had the opportunity to meet his wonderful family. His staff went above and beyond for us. We were treated like gold.
Negatives? I would have to dig very deep and say the liquid you have to drink for the leak test is horrible and that's it. But hey it's a very small amount.Anyone who chooses Dr. Kelly will not be disappointed.

My first impression of Dr.Kelly was good he was very attentive to my questions and i could tell he was very qualified.Trish his patient coordinator was awesome. And the office staff was very nice.Just know that the overall experience with Dr. Kelly was a great one.He came in and introduced hisself let me know what to expect and what was going to take place.Dr.Kelly is an excellent Dr.His bedside manner and surgical expertise was outstanding

I was sleeved by Dr. Kelly on 3/15/12. He made sure that he answered all of my questions, and that I was as comfortable as possible during my entire stay. My surgery was performed at the Oasis of Life hospital in Tijuana, and the nurses and staff there were very caring, and the hospital was very clean. I had very little nausesa, did not throw up at all, and six days after my surgery my incisions are well on their way to healing and I feel great. I think that if you are looking for a caring, extremely competent surgeon in Mexico, you are doing yourself a disservice if you do not consider Dr. Kelly. He truly does a great job, both as a surgeon and as a person.

Dr. Kelly is an awsome doctor not only did he care for me during my stay at the clinic he also took great care of me once i was discharged and got a pretty bad cold while staying the hotel. He really cares about his patients and what i really liked is he wants you to ask question about the procedures. I would recommend him to any one who wants to have him do there surgery. I just cant say thank you enough to him for his kindness and willingness to listen and answer all of my questions and the awsome job he did for me in my new start in life. You will not be dissatisfied with this doctor..... Rachelle Matte, Louisiana