San Jorge Clinica Bariatric Center

Very responsive, very helpful from the beginning. This man bends over backwards to assist you in any way he can. I will post further after surgery.

I'm headed to Spain in a month for surgery. I'm having to go self-pay so I'm doing a great thing by using a fabulous dr and saving money. I'm completely ready for this!!! I chose Dr. Baltasar in Alcoy SPain after hearing so many good things and emailing with him. We corresponded by email with tests he wanted me to have done, with instructions etc. It as very clear and easy to set up. When I met Dr. Baltasar the night before my surgery I instantly liked him. He was friendly, funny and very honest. He made me very comfortable immediately and I felt safe and positve about my surgery. He was in and out several times a day the whole time I was there and seemed very proud of what he does. When people say he's holding their hand and patting their cheek..its true. He's a very human surgeon and I really liked that. He doesn't consider himself to be god either..he says he has a talent and he loves to use it to help others. I find that very endearing.

I had a consult with Dr. Heap in Eastern Washington. Dr. Heap was wonderful. Very business like but very friendly and humorous talking after the exam. Asked alot of questions and was very respectful and talked to me like an intelligent human being. I had a list of questions I wanted to ask and he was patient and very concise with responses. I am hoping to get my insurance to cover this and get going!!!



Dr Emma Patterson - I liked the thought of a female surgeon, but I've changed my mind after all the inadequate answers and the feeling that the office staff had no interest in helping me understand the flow of the office and what to expect. I was expected to do certain things first before seeing Dr Patterson which I felt I would do but I needed some other information before I started shelling out money, like did they even take my insurance, did she do higher BMI patients etc. I felt it was unreasonalbe to also expect me to appear in Portland 3 times for appts with no reason to believe I'd get my surgery. I think they should have had a bit of room to maneouver for the out of town patient and also provide more information up front so I could make an informed decision.

Dr. Baltasar is one of the most caring doctors that I have ever met. He is very relaxed and comfortable with himself. His confidence in his abilites and your recovery made me feel absolutely secure in my choice for a surgeon. Risks and possible complications were covered and aftercare is through his yahoo website with other patients. If you need to ask any questions you can call or use email. He was a 10+!! Bedside manner was fantastic and as I was going out he even held my hand and said, "Everything is going to go perfectly and your surgery will be a success!" WOW!
Nurses were very competant and caring (their english is not very good, bit they do get their point across). The Clinica on the outside looks like nothing, but the OR room is state of the art. After surgery you are walking immediately! There is no pampering... You must get up and walk! The clinica doesn't supply you with a house coat or things to wear so be prepared with your own supplies.

My first impression was on the internet. He seemed very caring and sincere. Upon meeting him in person, he was even more wonderful than I imagined. He was the most sincere and caring person, not just doctor, that I had ever met. His staff was wonderful. So much so that it was sad when we all parted ways. There was nothing I disliked about him. He was very determined that your recovery would be uneventful. He made sure you moved, walked, took in nutrition, etc. He saw you at least 2x's per day and sometimes 3x's per day. There was nothing that I disliked about him. Dr. B was the first person you saw when you arrived in the surgical suite. As you were put to sleep in surgery, he held your hand and talked to you. When you came to, he was by your side. He has a very good aftercare program set up and works hand in hand with your PCP at home. He is very open with you about the complications that could occur but he instills confidence in you that that is not going to happen. He is a fantastic surgeon and human being. He is more than competent and his bedside manner is fantastic. If I have anything negative to say it is about their pain control. They do not coddle patients as we do in the US. You are made to get up and walk 3-4 hours after you get out of recovery. You are given morphine shots about every 6 hours. The beds are still the manual roll up type and the IV's are still glass bottles. The surgical suite, x-ray, lab, etc. were state of the art.

My first impression was off course colored by all the positive things I've heard about him before I went down. He was very nice, humourous and honest about the risks and possibilities for complications. My impression changed very little over time, I only got even more respect for the mans knowledge and experience with the DS. The only thing I worry about regarding Dr. Baltasar is that he works ALL THE TIME! When is he resting?

The nurses at the clinica is not speaking much english, but some of them at least tries. With a dictionary you will get further. They are very compassionate and caring.

Dr. Baltasar emphasize aftercaring very strongly. You will get instructions about what to do and don't.

I would definately recommend him to everybody that seeks a brilliant surgeon. Not only because he is so nice and great with his patients, but he has an extreme amount of experience and knowledge. Those aspects compensate for the lack of modern hospitalequipment, such as electric beds and stuff. The really important things they've got.

I was a little afraid of having surgery in a different country. At first I thought he was a very compassionate doctor.

My impression changed after joining his support group list on the internet and getting to know former patients of his, and then I decided he was the only surgeon for me.

His office staff were amazing. They spoke little English, but got the message across and were very compassionate. They worked very hard to make me comfortable.

I can't think of anything I don't like about Dr. Baltasar. With my complications he called me in my hospital room, very concerned about my welfare. He's the most compassionate doctor I've ever met.

He is very experienced in his field, does only the DS surgery and IS a very compassionate surgeon.

He follows-up through email, answers all questions, and stresses care through your primary care physician.

Like I said, just through email as it's hard for most North American patients to go to Spain for aftercare.

Dr. Baltasar addressed risks of surgery very honestly, though had statistics on them and they were very low.

I would rate Dr. Baltasar as 10/10, he is the most compassionate and caring doctor I ever did meet. I see why all his patients rave about him.

Dr. Baltasar has, as far as I'm concerned, the most surgical competence. His bedside manner is second to none. He is an extremely wonderful doctor.

There was only one small problem I encountered going to Spain. I woke up during surgery. I didn't have my breathing tube out yet and the anesthesia
wore off. I panicked as I felt I couldn't breathe and felt the last two stitches going in. It bothered me for awhile, but now is starting to
become a faded memory.

I would highly recommend Dr. Baltasar to anyone wishing to have the Duodenal Switch. He is an extremely competent surgeon who also cares very much for his patients. Dr. Baltasar took the time to answer all of my questions before surgery and visited me daily after surgery.

My first impression of Dr. Baltasar was that he was a kind caring man. He had come highly praised by the other Americans who had gone to Spain to have the Duodenal Switch.When we got to Spain to the small hospital he went over the risks of surgery and had me sign a paper acknowledging that I understand that there were risks. He went out of his way to assure me he would treat me as if I were his own daughter.They Did not administer any pre surgery calming shot, But Dr. baltasar stood at my side holding my hand and calmly explaining all the preparation for surgery as it went on around me. He was very reassuring. All my interactions with Dr Baltasar were very Posative

Dr Baltasar is rated among the 3 top DS surgeons in the world. He is highly respected by his fellow surgeons ,has many honors and credentials,Has a very low death rate 0.5% and also very few leaks,less than 5%. He is being honored by the American College of Surgeons this April in NYC at their convention,they have asked him to give 2 speaches there.I am proud to have him as my surgeon.

Aftercare is done through my PCP. if there are any abnormalities in my labs , Dr.Baltasar Emails me or the PCP with the remedy he proposes. So far other than low Iorn at 6 months all my labs are perfect.The world really isnt a big place anymore, Dr Baltasar is never more than an Email or a phonecall away.

He is both surgically expert and has an ideal bedside manner.I also was left with the feeling that for him , the DS surgery and helping the Morbidly obese is a Spiritual calling And he has a true desire o help his patients have the best life they can lead.He intuitively understands the Suffering we have had to endure to get to this big decision in life.

Dr Baltasar at different times in his career has done all of the major obesity surgeries and has come to the conclusion that the Ds offers the morbidly obese the higest chance of having anormal lifestyle and the lowest chance of weight regain.His patients are very happy with the results of their surgery. from what I can tell on theYahoo group site for his patients, they almost always reach their goal or come very close and weight regain is a non issue

I cant think of a thing to say that is negative about Dr.Baltasar.He is wonderful.

Dr.B is a great guy, very caring and thorough--he is all everyone says he is.

My 2nd surgeon, at St.Mary's in Rochester,MN is a Dr. Mark Sawyer, he is 6'6" and wears cowboy boots :-)...he is a talented and caring man with a bit of rebel in him...I liked him immensely, cuz he saved my life.

For the first time I "meet" a doctor who's taken my ideas of getting a weight loss surgery done, serious.
I have never met Dr. Baltasar but we have had our contact by mail.
He's the sweetest dr. you can imagine, and he's answering my mail and all my questions very quick.
I look forward to go to Spain and meet him in personal.