UMass Memorial Medical Center Bariatric Center

My first impression of Dr Kelly was wow, he's so small...lol He's a little man with a big heart. He takes the time to explain everything to you, in your terms, so that you are comfortable with what he's explaining. He's a wonderful man, surrounded by wonderful staff. His associate is wonderful, she's so pleasant to talk with. Anyone going to see Dr Kelly should feel right at home, he's not out to hurt you, just help you... but only if your ready to change... he can only do the surgery, it's up to you to do the rest. He's there to help you as much as he can. Dr Kelly takes the time to assure his patients are comfortable for what he's about to do even the day of surgery. He's a soft spoken man, very polite, and very attentive to your every needs. Dr Kelly's bedside manor was just as well as his surgical competence, I don't know where he came from, but I'm sure he's got some awefully proud parents somewhere. My entire experience with Dr Kelly has been fantastic, I have nothing to complain about. Job well done as far as I'm concerned.

When I went to see Dr. P. I was suprised to find out he looks like Jeff Gordon from NASCAR.
He was very caring, patient, gave me a lot of good information. He is sending me for a lot of test, and clearances by other Dr's because of some health issues which make me feel good to know he wants me in the best of shape.
He went over the risk of the surgery very well. He tells you just like it is. I think that was great.
He tells you right from the start that aftercare is VERY, VERY important. He even has a kind of structured aftercare program from what he told me.
His office staff is very helpful. They were very pleasant to deal with.

I fely like Doogie Howser was going to do my surgery, I was so tempting to ask him his age, he looked like he was 20....But he was very nice, informative, very honest and up front...Went over everything from the very start and what he expects of you after surgery...

Dr. Perugini was great. He was understanding to all questions I had, and had answers for them all. I still think he is great, but at my last appointment I was a bit dissapointed that I didn't see him. I saw someone else who didn't identify herself, at all. I had no idea who she was or how she was affilated with Dr. Perugini.
I have always seen him at every visit, so I was cought off guard when I didn't see him.

My first impression of Dr. Perugini was "Wow he looks young!" As we began to talk, he is very knowledgeable with the whole bariatric surgery. He answered all my questions with confidence and truthfullness. I felt comfortable with him and the whole appointment. He set up many tests for me to take such as a sleep study and chest xrays. These are standard tests. Dealing with his office is great too! Jacqueline his assistant is wonderful! She knows the answers to the questions I have too! She is very comforting and easy to talk to. She takes the time to let you speak and ask the questions you have. She is very helpful when it comes to insurance questions too! What i liked least about the appointment was the time I had to wait. My appointment was at 1:00pm and i didn't get in to see him until 2:30. That was a major issue for me. Then while I was waiting the nurse that took my vital signs was really rude and didn't seem friendly towards me. She gave me a small BP cuff and tried to use it and still after I mentioned she may need a bigger one, she appeared annoyed, also when we went to weigh in, she tried to use a regular doctor scale...the ones that go to 350lbs...I am obviously more than 350lbs! tHIS ANNOYED ME AS WELL. BUT- once I met with the doctor, thigs were better. Dr. Perugini mentioned the after care briefly, he expects us as adults to follow through with what is prescribed. He also mentioned the support groups and diet that needs to be followed.
He also described the risks and after effects of surgery, but still made me feel comfortable and I am so ready for the surgery!!

Dr. Kelley is the best gastric bypass surgeon in town. I was very lucky to have him. He is always very professional, patient and kind. Dr. Kelley has the best staff in town. He always has a team of surgical residents who are in the o.r. during your surgery and check on you numerous times a day during your hospital stay. Dr. Kelley is quick in responding to your needs and questions post-op too if problems arise. I would give Dr. Kelley, his residents and staff an A+++ in all aspects of surgical competance, bedside care, and post-op care. The only thing that was frustrating at times was the waiting period for your initial group meeting at UMASS/MEMORIAL to your day of surgery. (It was 18 months of waiting for me.)

My first impression of Dr Perugini was that he was very knowledgable and willing to answer any questions that I had. Over time I came to appreciate that he made himself available even when not on call to the point where he gave me his beeper #. His office and staff were very helpful and non judgemental.

I was informed of all the risks with the first visit and he was up front with me all the way. After surgery he and one of his residents checked in with me about 4 times a day. I have had some minor issues after coming home, an infected insision, and an inflamed muscle and both times he was readily available and ran tests to make sure nothing else was going on. Although I was concerned and upset, I was also pleased that the internal workings were ok.
They also have follow up visits to monitor blood levels and deficiencies.

I would rate him as excellent and be more than willing to recommend him to anyone.

I think that both surgical competence and bedside manner were both very good.

I really did not have any negative issues with the Doctor.

Dr. Cherniach was trained by Dr. John Kelly, UMass Medical Center. Dr. Cherniach was a very thorough, caring surgeon. He has a good bedside manner, as well as being a very good surgeon. I had a few complications and he was right there for me, and I never worried that I wasn't in the best hands possible. Dr. Cherniach's manner (and Dr. Kelly's too) is very "un-surgeon like". They take as much time with patients as the patient needs, and on the times I have called the office, I get a return call from the surgeon within 1-2 hours even if my call is not urgent.

Dr. Kelly of UMASS Memorial Campus (Worcester, Massachusetts) was a small frame man with a gentle sounding voice when I first met him. Although I traveled almost an hour away to see him, I had done my research. He had performed thousands of gastric bypass operations using the laproscopic method.
When I finally had my one-to-one consultation with Dr. Kelly e was very thorough in his explanation of what was to come. His staff was also very helpful and supportive and they too reviewed the procedure with me. The nutrition class was very helpful and the 4 sessions with Dr. Kaplan about the psycological effects of eating was excellent. Dr. Kelly made it very clear who succeeds and who does not. Exercise MUST be part of your life and walking just doesn't cut it. The treadmill and more aerobic activity, especially in the first 18 months are very important to successful weight loss. This is a critical time period. He said I have to take responsibility for eating and exercising for total health.
The only problem with the whole procedure was that the expected 6-12 month estimate for this surgery with Dr. Kelly ended up to be 17 months from the time my name went on the list at my second group seminar until surgery date. This was mostly due to the growing list of patients, but there were several administrative errors and delays. Someone had cancelled my first appointment by accident and I had to wait another 3 weeks to get one. The required 4 week class with Dr. Kaplan atarted at the beginning of each month and I had to wait 6 weeks to get into the next class.
Dr Kelly visited me several times while in the hospital and the doctor who assists him visited me each day. "Nicole", which she likes to be called, examined the incisions, changed dressings and removed the drain on discharge day. She was also very supportive emotionally. Dr. Kelly returned my husband's cell phone call after getting out of surgery and left a very detailed message. A genuine doctor with surgical competence with great bedside manner!

I thought he was wonderful the first time I heard him speak. He always attends monthly informational meetings and very oftens stays late to continue answering questions. His program is very intensive and all the departments really work together to provide you with the best support pre and post-op. It is a longer program than some but it is well worth it because of the incredible support that is given. He has always been available when I had questions and he never made me feel hurried. He is a very good listener and doesn't talk down to you wich is very important to me. I don't usually have a good relationship with doctors but he is very much an exception. He really makes sure you understand completely what you are getting into and will not proceed with the surgery until he feels you are ready mentally for it. He is soft spoken and makes you feel instantly at ease and secure. The office staff was always very pleasent and tried their best to accomidate. I couldn't possibly say enough good things about Dr. Kelly, I was very lucky to have had him for a surgeon. I have tried but I really cannot say anything negative about Dr. Kelly. The only negative that I have is with the other departments such as Nutrition and Behavoiral Medicine. Those problems, such as long waits between visits and delayed paperwork, were strictly due to inadequate staffing and not competence. They did try their best to be fair with everyone and patience is needed. It took me one year to get through the program but to me it really didn't seem that long. I have no regrets and would not have gone anywhere else even if they told me I could have had it done much sooner.