WhyWeight.com Bariatric Center

After my consulation with Dr. Lavin, I found him to be very down to earth, very understanding and very positive.

His office staff was great as well.

Althouh, i have not met him, many people tell me he is a blessing and a joy to be around. supposedly, he is one of the best in the united states!! i will meet him in a week. can't wait!!

I decided against the RNY and have decided that the best WLS procedure for me is DS. I had to change surgeons and my new surgeon is Dr. Clark Warden. My first impression with Dr. Warden was that he was friendly, knowledgeable, and professional. I am confident in his surgical abilities and I look forward to having him perform my surgeon.

My first impression of Dr. Lavin was wonderful. He listened to me and my concerns. He is a hero to me. He has helped me change my life forever and I am so grateful to him for all of his hard work. You really have to like your doctor b/c your life is in his hands with the job that he is doing. I would just like to tell him thakyou over and over again for everything.
As far as the office staff they couldn't be a nicer. A lot of them have had this surgery done themselves so they know what it is like and what we are going through. I couldn't have picked a better Dr. and staff for this

I really did like Dr Lavin, he was very caring and concerned for how I felt about the surgery. He answerd all and any of my questions even if they where a little silly. He understood my concern with my family excepting what ever surgery I am to have. The office staff on the scale of 1-10 would be a 8 they are very nice and polite. Alot have had the procedures done so they understand what u are about to go thru.

So far, Dr. Lavin has been great. His office staff does a tremendous job. When I had my consult with him, I was assessed by a student nurse practitioner doing her clinicals with Dr. Lavin. She has also been lap-banded by Dr. Lavin. Laura and Beth, in his office, have been great...always pleasant and eager to help...I'll be experiencing all them further as surgery gets closer...


It's been so long since I've looked at my profile.....

I must say I love Dr. Lavin and his staff. I've been very pleased with the treatment I've received. I'm now down 101 pounds (status post lap-band and conversion to LGBP). I was 70 lbs successful with lap-band over 13 months, then experienced slippage. At that point, I converted to LGBP and have reached my goal weight.

Surgical Specialists of LA & Southern Bariatric Associates have been wonderful! I highly recommend them.

When I first me Dr. Lavin, he had a very confident attitude and wanted only what was best for me. I have not been the best patient, I have only gone to one check up, but see my regular doctor every three months. But the second time i was in his office was better than the first because I had already had the surgery but Dr. Lavin was the same, very concerned, focused on me and my recovery. He is the best! There is just nothing I could say in a negative way about him, just that i wish he was more accessible in my area, the long drive is the reason I did not return for the 3 month and 6 month check ups.
Dr. Lavin's surgical competence and bedside manner are both Grade A, he is what other Dr.'s should grade themselves against. I would let him operate on my child if nessasary, that is the greatest compliment I think I could give, and he deserves it.


Thank you,
Tammie Walker
Pineville La.

Dr. Lavin is a very nice and down-to-earth surgeon. I only met him a couple of times, but the times I did speak with him, he was wonderful.

His office staff is the MOST frienly office staffs I've ever been in contact with. You can tell they truly care about the patients.

I was given a suggested diet to follow. After the surgery though, I threw it right out the window. I wanted to chew something so bad, it was killing me. So, I verified with the office and I could follow what my body was telling me and experiment (carefully) with food on my own.

I had to see Dr. Lavin one week post-op. I have to go back after 1 month, then 3 months, then 6 months and yearly....forever.

I rate Dr. Lavin and his office staff a 9 on a scale from 1 - 10.

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. 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