The Surgical Specialists of Louisiana Bariatric Center

Dr. Lavin was great. On October 8,2003 when I went in to the office he explained everything in detail including a hand drawn picture of the procedure. He was very professional and so was his staff. He had a very neat appearance and did not come across as a " here we go again " person. He treated me and my husband with respect and answered all our questions. It helped take some of the doubt away from our minds. Thank you to Dr. Lavin and his associates and staff for doing an excellent job with everything. Kim was expecially helpful with the diet class pre-op. Thanks Kim.
I would rate Dr. Lavin and his staff a definate 9 on a scale of 1-10. On the day of surgery he called the hospital at 11:00pm just to check on me and then again at 5:00 am the next morning. I then saw Maria, the Nurse Pract. at about 10:30am and Dr. Lavin himself was in at around 5:00pm that afternoon.
I would recommend Dr. Lavin to anyone considering this procedure.

I first met Dr Thomas at a seminar in Slidell in Feb 2003. He is young and very personable. I met with him in April 2003 for my first visit. I liked him. He was easy to talk to, answered all of my questions and did not seem rushed. Since I was a self-pay and we didn't have an insurance company to deal with I was able to get the pre-op orders for Labs etc. at that visit. At my pre-op visit with him the week before surgery things changed. He was rushed and seemed anxious for the visit to be over. He did answer all of my questions as we were signing release forms, however, I could tell he was in a hurry. I did not see him before the procedure the morning of surgery. I also did not see him later that day. I was seen by an associate of his late in the afternoon on the day after surgery. I was very disappointed in the way my case was handled in the hospital. I did not see Dr Thomas until the morning he discharged me. He entered my room, asked how I was doing, told me he was releasing me and for me to make an appointment to see him in about a week, and then he was gone. I felt no real caring attitude from him at all. He did a wonderful job with my surgery. I had zero complications, so I have to say his surgical abilties are top notch. However, if you are looking for a Dr that shows care and concern even if you don't have complications, I'd have a hard time recommending Dr. Thomas. With me he had little bedside manner. I wanted and needed a doctor that knows how important it is for a patient to feel a bond, especially with such an emotional and life changing surgery. It would have taken him 10 minutes while I was in the hospital to sit on the bed and really look at me and ask how I was doing... to show me that he was there for me. It makes me very sad that he never took that 10 minutes out of his day. He wasn't in the office when I went for my one week follow up appointment. I saw the Nurse Practitioner, Maria. She helped me with every thing I needed. I also made my appointment with her for my six week check-up. I have no idea when I will ever see Dr. Thomas again. My husband has has many surgeries in the last 8 years.. and I've never seen a surgeon handle a patient like Dr. Thomas handled me. It took me totally by surprise.

I am also disapointed with the aftercare program at Southern Bariatrics. At the pre-op class that you are required to attend before surgery you are given a packet of information. It says someone will call to check on you in the days after you're released from the hosptial. No one ever called me. I felt like I was totally on my own. However, the couple of times I've had to call with questions, my calls were answered within the day either by Maria or Laura.

I believe that Southern Bariatric may be bombarded with more patients than they are prepared to handle because of the sudden increase in bariatric surgeries. Perhaps over time things will improve.

I first met Dr. Lavin at a seminar that his office hosted. I had not made the decision to have surgery at the time, I was just interested in getting as much information as I could. Well the seminar was very informative and they opened up the floor to answer questions afterwards. Dr. Lavin went around and personally spoke to everyone there and answered any questions that they had.

I researched the surgery, facilities, and local surgeons that performed the surgery for a few more months before making my final decision. I was hesitant of having the surgery at Lakeview Hospital because I know a few people that had bad experiences there, but after meeting with Dr. Lavin and his nurse, Marie.........my mind was put to ease and I decided to have the surgery at Lakeview.

Dr. Lavin's office handled everything!! They told me what my next steps would have to be and they wrote the letter to my insurance with my medically necessary reasons for surgery. My insurance (Seafarer's Health & Benefits Plan), approved my surgery based on that first letter (it must have been a great letter :)

As a surgeon.........you can not ask for anyone better than Dr. Lavin........he explained in great detail all about the procedure and was very patient with both my husband and myself!


If there is one thing I could say that is somewhat negative about my experience (sorry Dr. Lavin), it would have to be regarding the contact after surgery......there is very little, I sort felt like I was my own. Of course they tell you to call if you have any questions or concerns, but I really was disappointed that I was not contacted by anyone in the office after surgery to check on how I was dealing with all the changes. I sincerely hope this was just my experience and not anyone else's. I adjusted well because I diligently researched what to expect, found this website (Thank God), and made sure to contact as many past gastric bypass recipients as I could. It also helped that I had a wonderful support system in my husband, my two daughters, all my friends, and the rest of my family.

I do have to recognize one particular person that works in Dr. Lavin's office, of all the people he has working for him, my favorite is another nurse in his office....her name is Carrie........she is so sweet and has helped me with any questions I have had since surgery. She also had the gastric bypass surgery (and she looks terrific)!!

In regards to Dr. Lavin's surgical performance............my surgery went great, my scars are minimal, no complications from surgery at all, Dr. Lavin is awesome. I would highly recommend him to anyone that is considering the laporscopic gastric bypass surgery! If anyone in my family were considering the surgery I would demand that they go to Dr. Lavin!!

Thank you Dr. Lavin for not only saving my life, but for making my life full and worth living again!!! <tear...sniffle...sniffle..>

Good Luck to all! Hope this has been helpful.
Debbie Long

I definately had to update this section because my doctors were just awesome. I had some problems after my surgery and Dr. Lavin and Dr. French were there for me every step of the way, checking up on me and reassuring me. They would call and talk to the nurses a few times a day on my progress. Even when I got out of the hospital, I had to return to St. Louis and Dr. Lavin called me at home and made a special trip to the doctors office to check up on me before I left. Not to mention both doctors are such cutie patuties. hehe Their staff is the best also, they will bend over backwards to help you out with anything ya need. They all really seem to care about their patients!!!

My first visit was 6/12/03. I met with Dr. Lavin's Nurse Practitioner, Maria. She was very nice and even had the surgery herself. I didn't get to meet with Dr. Lavin as he was called away to surgery. She assured me that I would get to meet with him on another visit. His office staff seems very on the ball. I went for the consult on Thursday and I was approved on Monday! Maria told me that I have to attend a pre-op class that teaches you about how to eat, etc. They also have aftercare meetings. When I asked about how many have died, she said only 2 in over 500 surgerys. She explained those situations and we went over the risks. After finishing all of my required tests I met with Dr. Lavin. He seemed to be very confident and knowledgable about the surgery and answered the questions that we threw at him. He seemed to be a little hurried but was will to talk if we wanted more answers. I had the surgery on July 7th 2003. I didn't see Dr. Lavin until the day after surgery. He was very professional and confident. After surgery I had a 2 week visit and met with Maria again. She spends as much time as you need with her. She seems more than willing to answer any questions. She has had the surgery herself which is a big help. For my one month visit, I made an apt with Dr. Lavin. The wait is long in the waiting room (about 1 1/2) and he seems a bit rushed. My apt was near the end of the work day and he was running behind so I can partially understand why he was rushed. I like Dr. Lavin and think that he is a very competant surgeon but I think that for the future visits, I will make my apt with Maria.

Dr. Lavin is really nice, he answered all questions. The only problem I have had with him, is that he runs late for his appointments so you have to wait, but my surgery was wonderful. No problems. I would reccomend him to anyone.

Dr. Lavin was very helpful in answering any questions that we had. He is a very nice doctor who also has a sense of humor. His office has been great with helping me try and getinsurance approval(BETH!!!!) and with any other needs that I have had. Nothing to say but positives!!!!

We met Dr Moore at a siminar this week. She is VERY nice and very informed!

So far I have had nothing but pleasent converstaions with her office staff. Nikki has been SO wonderful to listen to me rant for about 20 mins the other day!

Dr. Warden was vrey patient centered on my first visit with him - this was extremely important as this was also my pre-op visit. He was professional and direct and communicated easily in response to all of the questions that my husband and I had concerning the procedure. As I continued through the post operative phase my opinion of him did not change. He is very interested in after care of his patients and his staff are always willing to contact him regarding any questions that I may have. He nor his staff never down played the risks of this type of surgery and since I was having the Duodenal Switch, Dr. Warden was extremely careful to go over the increased risks of complications that accompany this surgery. I would give him an excellent rating for both his surgical skills and his bedside manner. In addition, his office staff are some of the most supportive people that I ever met - they gave me their home phone numbers in case I had any difficulty when traveling or upon my arrival in Mississippi. Kudos to all the folks at South Mississippi Weight Loss Surgery Center.

DR. LAVIN AND HIS OFFICE STAFF ARE GREAT. THEY ARE VERY HELPFUL WHEN CALLING WITH QUESTIONS, AND SUPPORTIVE WHEN GOING TO THE OFFICE. THEY CONGRATULATE YOU AND OFFER MORAL SUPPORT. HE IS THE BEST SURGEON IN MY AREA FOR THE SURGERY. I WOULD RECOMMEND HIM TO ANYONE PLANNING ON HAVING SURGERY OR CONSIDERING IT. DR. LAVIN WILL EXPRESS DEEP INTEREST IN YOU AS A PATIENT BEFORE AND AFTER SURGERY. AFTERCARE IS REALLY WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT. YOU KNOW THE DO'S AND DONT'S, AND IT IS UP TO YOU TO FOLLOW THEM. OVERALL, I LOVE MY SURGEON AND WOULD LET HIM PERFORM THE SUGERY AGAIN, IF I HAD TO. EVERYONE SHOULD LOOK FOR A SURGEON WHO IS CONFIDENT IN HIM/HERSELF, HAS GREAT RESULTS, AND GOOD MANNERS.