Kaiser Permanente Bariatric Center

concerned
he is thorough and concered
Cheerful and helpful
Nothing so far
That he seems to know what he's doing
They have built a comprehensive program with both preop consultations and aftercare support
The aftercare program is structure to meet my needs
He talked about the risks first visit and everytime since then
8+
both are great

I have my first consult with Dr. Baggs this wednesday (March 5th, '03). I can't begin to tell you how excited I am. Before you can make a consult with Dr. Baggs it is mandatory to attending a informative seminar. I did this, and am so anxious to get the ball rolling. The office staff he works with are incredible inviting and ever so willing to talk. After my actual one on one consult, I will have a more detailed account of who he is and how he makes me personally feel, but in the meantime, I'm very excited. My cousin was one of his patients when he was practicing down in California, and just seeing her, and hearing all the positive things she's had to tell me about her experience both with the surgery and with Dr. Baggs makes me feel confident that I've chosen the right man for the job. I'll keep you posted. : )
NEW ENTRY 3-6-03

Well, I finally met Dr. Baggs for my consult. WOW, what an overwhelming session of information!! There is so much to do and know.It will all be very much worth the end result I'm sure, but nonetheless, I find myself a little overwhelmed. As for Dr. Baggs personally, he seems a very caring and genuine man. I connected with him immediately. If I HAD to find something about the consult I didn't like it would have nothing to do with him or his staff. THEY ARE ALL WONDERFUL. The one thing that does have me stressing a bit though, is the fact that SBNW is not contracted with any insurance companies, and therefore everything is a "pay up-front" type of deal. I don't know about you but I don't just have thousands of dollars laying around. True, if your insurance decides to cover the procedure, you will be reimbursed for your costs, but that doesn't help much in the meantime. And my biggest worry is, what if I don find away to come up with all the $ needed to complete all the pre-op procedures (i/e: mental evaluation,meeting with the therapist & dietician) and then my insurance turns me down. Not only am I not getting the surgery, but I've spent $1600 on consults that are useless. I hope I'm not turning anyone off to the whole thing, it's just money is a real big concern. The surgery itself, I couldn't be more excited about. I have absalutely NO reservations as to Dr. Baggs competence in performing the surgery, or the surgery being a success. It really seems to be the answer I've been looking for. I'm really looking forward to the chance to fulfill my dream. To any of you that are thinking of following this same path... GO FOR IT... You have everything to gain...........EXCEPT WEIGHT. : )

My first impression was that she was very young. Yes overtime my impression changed. The staff was nice but did not seem invested in the patients. What I liked the least was the lack of time. I only saw her once before surgery and did not feel like we had a relationship. The aftercare follow up has been very disappointing. I haven't been able to see her I saw one of her partners who I did not know. I also was refered to the RD with questions and concerns. Kaiser's aftercare program is run thruogh the weight management program. That program I feel overall is good. I just wish it included a better relationship with the surgeon.

From my first meeting with Dr. Baggs, he was professional and caring. Susan, the nurse practitioner with Dr. Baggs' office was wonderful. She helped to put me at ease on my first visit. Then Dr. Baggs came in for my consultation. Those two together are a great team. They listened too all my questions and concerns then answered any and all of them. We went over the risks and benefits of the surgery as well as everything that this procedure entails, such as nutrition, psychological challenges, fitness and aftercare. The aftercare programs consist of check up and support group meetings. The staff and Surgeons of Surgical Bariatrics Northwest invest so much into you as a patient; they really want you to be successful with this procedure.

My first impression of Dr. Baggs was a quiet but professinal physician. My impression has changed in that he remains quiet, professional but he is also caring and very knowledgeable.
The entire staff has been incredible. They are very caring people especially Susie the nurse practioner. I have appreciated her warm heart and going the extra mile in helping patients pre and post op!
Future patients should know Dr. Baggs is a little quiet at first but he is very helpful and wants patients to contact him if any questions or concerns.
Dr. Baggs as well as the entire office emphasizes aftercare and the importance of staying in the post-op support group.
Risks were addressed. I would rate Dr. Baggs and the entire Surgical Bariatrics N.W. office stellar. They have been very helpful in my journey.
Which is better, surgical competence or bedside manner? Yikes, what a question. I would off the top of my head say surgical competence but...bedside manner is important too. Patients want to be able to ask questions and receive emotional support from their docs without fear of getting cut down. I think the physician's attitude is important in the patient's recovery and success post-op. Dr. Baggs is extremely competent surgically and also has a warm bedside manner.

My first impression was that of confidence, it was very easy to talk to him,letting me talk him to him about my concerns and getting honest answers.
My impression of him never changed.
The office staff was great Terry really had to work at it to get my insurance to approve my surgery, it took 4 months to get the approval.
If I have to say somthing about him that I didn't like I would have to say the fact that he moved- the people of Idiho got a great surgeon!! Northern California will miss him!!
What future patients should know is that he knows what he's doing I would recommend him to all of my friends and family without any hesitations!!
Because Dr. Baggs moved I did not use his aftercare program, I live almost 6 hours away from his previous offices. So I used all the info his office and diettion had given to me and a local support group. But if I would have had any problems I would not have hesitated to go back there or to have called him, I know he would have helped.
When It comes to the risks he layed them right out there for me, so that I could could make the right decision for me.
How I would rate him overall would have to be an A++.
Surgical Competence I would have to say is better, so what if a Doctor is nice (and Dr. Baggs is!!) If he can't or didn't do his job right no amount of niceness is going to make up for what you may end up going through.

I am sorry, it says I am supposed to put even the negitive down but to be honest it was everything I had been warned and prepared for and I hate to say it but so much easier my body and system than I could have ever imagined!!

I loved Dr. Baggs the min. I met him. I could tell he was disgusted with the way I had been treated previously. My impression didnt change over time, but he earned a permanant place in my heart. The staff is the best. I could never say enough great things about them. I cant think of anything at all that I didnt like about Dr. Baggs. He is my heart! Dr Baggs is big on aftercare and follow up.. Drink your water is one of his favorite things to get on you about (lovingly of course). Aftercare for me consisted of the follow up appointments and taking care of little things that came up. He allways made me feel like I was his only patient although I know I wasnt. Dr. Baggs talked extensively about the risks and wanted to make sure I was really ready for the surgery. I could tell he truely cared and wasnt just there to get one more patient, one more case for his books, more money for the office. No one can ever replace Dr Baggs. He is one of a kind. Both his gurgical competence and bedside manner are out of this world. As you can tell I am his biggest fan. He and his staff have helped to change my life and add years to my life by being healthier for myself and my children. I love Dr. Baggs!!

What was your first impression of him/her?
Very positive, I am from a medical background and it was obvious he was both very knowledgable and very professional

How did your impression change over time?
Had an even better impression

How would you describe his/her office staff?
Very organized and committed to patient care, a great team.

What did you like least about him/her? I have a very positive impression.

What should future patients know about him/her? They will be treated with care and compassion. The team is very committed to the whole persion and to the individual's overall success not just doing the operation.

How much does he/she emphasize aftercare?
It is a very important part of the program. They have supervised Support groups before and after surgery.

Does he/she have a structured aftercare program? Both a structured aftercare program and a structured preop program

How did he/she address the risks of surgery?
Adequately without instilling fear

How would you rate him/her overall?
Excellent

Which is better, surgical competence, bedside
manner, or both great?
Both are great

My first impression; she is very confident, caring and friendly.

I feel my first impression was correct.

The staff was very helpful and friendly also.

I can't say that there was anything I did not like about Dr. Davis, she took her time to answer all my questions (whole page list), and she didn't seem rushed.

Dr. Davis is very informative and matter-of-fact. She has alot of experience (22 yrs) and success under her belt (no fatalities, leaks).

She stresses the need for aftercare and did discuss this with me. She explained the steps I will take once my surgery is complete.

Dr. Davis is with Kaiser and Kaiser has a great structured aftercare program. It is basically a continuation of the pre-surgery weight management program.

She addressed the most common risks and did emphasize the fact that they consider this to be a permanent surgery.

I am very impressed with Dr. Davis, I was assigned one of three surgeons at Kaiser and am very happy about the fact that I got Dr. Davis.

I feel that she is competent in both sugical competence and bedside manner. These are my impressions after my consultation, I will not see Dr. Davis again until the day of surgery.

I had my consultation with Dr. Baggs on May 18, 2001. I had changed from Dr. Wetter hoping to speed things up a bit. I was told that Dr. Baggs joined the Mills-Peninsula Group and trained with Dr. Wetter and that he was excellent at laproscopic surgery. I felt very confident in my decision to change surgeons. Dr. Baggs is very nice and was very thorough in explaining to me the risks of WLS. The surgery coordinator, Terry, was very nice and answered all my questions regarding insurance, approval time, and scheduling.
Insurance approval was received in approximately one month from my consultation. This wasn't bad considering having to get the pshyc exam results submitted along with meeting with my orthopedic surgeon to get his letter of recommendation. Once Blue Shield had received all the information they required, approval was received in less then one day.
7/8/02 Update: I'm finally getting around to updating my information. I had my surgery on 8/20/01 and had no complications. Dr. Baggs is a wonderful surgeon and did a great job. He has now relocated out of state and I'm sorry for that but wanted to let his future patients know that he is an excellent lap surgeon and I'm glad I chose him to do my surgery.