ValleyCare Health System Bariatric Center

Dr. Mary Estakhri is awesome!. I am a nurse and when the program was at SRRMC I would take care of her patients. At that time she did more surgeries that WLS. Her patients always did well and her bedisde manner could not be better. ^ years later and here I am having a roux-n-y. I would not trust any BUT her to do my surgery. Her care, compasion and competence are unequalled

Dr. Estakhri came very recommended. I have been impressed with not only her surgical skills but also of her compassion. The program at Valleycare is excellent and includes amazing support from their entire staff. Valerie and Lola go beyond what you would expect and have been overwhelmingly generous with their time.

My first impression of Dr. Estakhri (pronounced EH- STOCK - REE) was that she was no nonsense upfront kind of surgeon. She was direct and to the point about the surgeries she performs (RNY and Lap Band.)

Over time: My impression didn't really change, she genuinly listened to me, and gave me feedback during the consultation. She was focused even though my nephew was a bit disctracting to me.

Her Office Staff: Professional, friendly and helpful for every call and at the consultation.

Like least: I, personally, didn't get a real feeling about the risks of the surgery. The examining room did not have an over sized examining table, and it was difficult to get onto.

Aftercare: Dr. Estrkhri does emphasize after care, the program pre-op and post op is very structured and conservative. She emphasizes this as a benefit, as the surgical group she belongs to has mortality and complication rates half of the national average. She has performed over 500 bariatric procedures in the past 8 years.

From the first visit, Dr. Estakhri was very warm and friendly. She is very up to date with all procedures involving weight loss surgery. I opted for the Lap RNY procedure and was very fortunate not to have any complications, this was almost 2yrs. ago and am doing very well.
If I had to rate her and her staff I would give them an A+. I was seen on time and wasn't rushed at all.
When I saw her after the surgery while still in the hospital, she was very supportive and attentive. Her bedside manner and surgical competence are both excellent. She makes you feel like you've known her for a long time.
I highly recommend her as well as the Valley Care Hospital program.

Mary is the best doctor I have ever had ... very caring and she listens to everything I say. She is very professional and her surgery was first rate. I can't reccomend her enough.
Her "pre-op training" and her aftercare is first rate and what I beleive will make me sucessful in her program.
She explained fully all the risks of the surgery but after alot of research I chose her because she is one of the best if not the best in her feild ... she has alot of expertise.
On a scale of 1 to 10 ... I would have to rate her a 12! She is that good.
Again I can't say enough about her ... she is the best!
The only negative I have is with the hospital ... they wrapped me in the wrong type of tape for my first shower and I'm still trying to get it off my body ... must have been alergic ... broke out where the tape was. Make sure they use Paper tape on you!

I was very impressed with Dr. Estakhri from the first time I met her. She took a lot of time talking with me in her office. She was extremely patient and kind and supportive, and she was also very confident about her work. She explained all of the risks of the surgery and asked me if I had any questions about it.This made me feel very comfortable and confident as well.

Her office staff is also very nice and helpful, and my impression has not changed over time. The only problem I could think of about Dr. Estakhri is that she works part time and is not always in the office. However her staff is very good about getting messages to her, and she always answers her messages personally which I reallly appreciate! I am always impressed when a doctor calls me personally.

The program she is with at Valley Care is excellent. They require several educational classes before surgery which really prepare you for everything that you might encounter. They also have a great active post op support group that is great for help and advice.

I would rate Dr.Estakhri very high.

I had read a lot of good things about Dr. Estakari before my appointment and I wasn't disappointed when I met her. I arrived a few minutes late and she would have been ready for me save for the phone call that came in. We (my husband and toddler) waited no more than 5 minutes in the waiting room and just a few minutes more in the medical room. After a few questions she did a physical exam and invited us to her office to talk. It was nice to talk about something so stressful in a comfortable environment. When you sit up on those tables it's hard to feel comfortable with the doctor below you and that crinkly paper below your lower half!

She showed us a drawing of both the LapBand and the gastric bypass and then focused her talk on the bypass. She showed us statistics, both average on paper and her's compared. All of her stats were lower, which made my husband feel better especially the death stats. She would have answered any questions that I had but I didn't really have much as I have done a huge amount of studying before my appointment.

She was very thorough on all the information that she gave me even gave me an idea what they required of me before the surgery. Dr. Estakhri is a surgeon that requires weight loss before, so I have to loose around 10-11 pounds. Their team meets twice a month so I am just awaiting their letter as to whether I am a candidate (they already told me I was) and what is required of me.

All and all I was very impressed. I will post more after this is all done! Good luck to all!

My first impression of Dr Estakhri was "thank God, shes the one!" I was so comfortable with her. She made me feel that there is hope and she was going to help me, help myself. I find the confidence I have for her has dispeled any fears I may have had. She stresses completely to be honest with her about everything as to prevent and problems. Her honestly regarding risks were scary but I must say she soothed the fear with detailed information.
Her program and office staff have been wonderful. (although I must say that for a while there I thought they forgot about me until I made a call and everything started moving quickly.)
It is a wonderful program of support classes and nutriional classes. the nurses that run them are dedicated to giving the best information and support needed for before and after surgery.

My First impression of Dr Estakhri was Great. I felt she really was a good surgeon, she seemed to do everything she could to avoid post op problems. I had to meet with each and everyone in the pannel and than they discide if I could have the surgery. I had a lot of goals to meet before they would do the surgery. she took her time with me and answered all questions I had. she explained why she did things a certian way or didn't do it that way. to avoid problems after surgery. she was up front and honest.
my good feelings about her only increased over time. The office staff were Great. Her RN Debbie was wonderful if I had a question, no matter what it was she would always give me an answer. I could even email her, and I would get a prompt respons.
she just seemed to do everthing she could do to reduce any complacations.
she is one of the top surgeron with this procedure. I have refurred many to her. She really stresses you stick to the rules. you have to follow up with her and the dietician. they have a great support group in Pleasenton. I've only gone once because we started one where I live 2 hrs away. But they were also willing to come 2 hrs up where we live to help us start a support group here. that is how much they care. they have a great after care group in pleasenton also a web site and you can post all your progress she follows it. I had no problems after surgery. she was up and honest with all the risks of the surgery. I was one of the ones that never vomited. was driving 3 days laster and took off 5 days after I got home and drove 3 hrs to a place and spent the day walking around shopping. I have no pain other than the normal after surgery soarness and was off pain meds 3 days after I got home 6 days after the actual surgery. I was in the hospital 3 days. took the meds 2 times the day I got home and once a day for 2 days after. never since than. I'm so happy with the doctor and her staff. I would recommend her to everyone. I would rate her at the top. Ive heard of many people that have problems in our area and only that went to a different place to have there surgery. it seemed they weren't followed up on properly or that the information on follow up wasn't good. I think she is top notch. both were excellent also I went to valley care medical center for my surgery and I have NEVER been treated better at any hospital in my life. NOT one poor attitude and every one was very well trained and knew there stuff. friendly. I was really impressed. I really can't think of any negatives about this, for me the doctor and her staff where great. the only thing I didn't like was the fact they got me up in the hospital at 3 Am and made me walk this was the 1st night in 4 yrs. that I had really slept good. I was really disapointed I had to be woken up. but it was to prevent clotting. I did have a friend that felt the same way about her.

I had my first meeting with Dr. Estakhri on January 31st. Both my husband and I were very impressed with her knowledge, professionalism and her caring. We were also extremely impressed with the clinic and the approach they take. The surgeon is on a team with a nurse practicioner, a dietician and a psychiatrist. You have to meet with all of them and then they meet as a team to discuss your case individually. You then receive a letter telling you what conditions you need to meet in order to go forward with the surgery. Mostly it involves weight loss (10% of your excess weight) and other medical tests if necessary. After 2/3 of your requirements are fulfilled, you get a surgery date and start with the Ins. approval. There are also two classes weekly, one is a pre-op & post-op supports group and the other is an education class with the dietician. Both support group classes are extremely beneficial and attendance at two monthly is a requirement. So far, (since I have not had surgery yet), I am very impressed.