Alberto Aceves Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

What was your first impression of him/her?
He was very caring and knowledgeable, very approachable and sincere.

How did your impression change over time?
I was very impressed with his overall demeanor.

How would you describe his/her office staff?
Very helpful, pleasant, responsive, and caring.

What did you like least about him/her?
Wished he was closer!

What should future patients know about him/her?
He is a very competent Dr and his english is excellent.


How much does he/she emphasize aftercare?
He went over his post op diet and care carefully prior to the the procedure.

Does he/she have a structured aftercare program?
No, out of country, but does ask for follow up calls or e-mals every ten days initially then once monthly for the year.

How did he/she address the risks of surgery?
His staff e-mailed a patient guide that described the risks, an online tutorial of each procedure, and prior to surgery he reviewed again the risks.

How would you rate him/her overall? Excellent.

Which is better, surgical competence, bedside manner, or are both great? To date I would say both were great.

Wow, he was so kind and made me feel so comfortable with my decision.
He explained the entire procedure, diet needs and expectations, things that "could" go wrong and why. He seems to care much more about his patients than the $$, and didn't ever act rushed or like he needed to hurry off.
His staff was wonderful (other than the 1st nurse who tried to do my IV, SHE didn't have a clue!), but he and Sergio, his private nurse came in and got the IV going with no problem at all.
He is very specific about aftercare, diet to follow and explained the fill procedure as well.
I was only under anesthesia for 40 min, the surgery was only 30, and I woke up feeling pretty darn good. All my incisions healed well and I only had a minor amount of shoulder pain to deal with. He and his staff are awesome, and his skills, I don't feel can be matched.

My first impression of Dr. Aceves was that he was soft-spoken, very knowledgeable about the lapband surgery with kind eyes.

My impression never changed.

His staff was great; all working together to give the best care to his patients.

Dr. Aceves explained everything in detail, the good, the bad and the ugly. He does offer free adjustments.

I feel surgical competence is the greater, however "bedside manners" go a long way with me.

Dr Aceves is a very caring person. He checked in on me several times every day to make sure that I was doing well and comfortable. He assigned a personal nurse to me that checked on me every hour or two. I don't think this person was a hospital staff person, but employed by Dr Aceves - I'm not sure about that, but I wouldn't doubt it.

The patient coordinators were there for me every step of the way. Each person spoke excellent English and was able to translate for me to the hospital staff. The gentleman that picked me up from the San Diego airport was very nice and gave me a little history of the area. On the return trip he even went out of his way to go to a second borderline crossing due to the lengthy line of vehicles waiting at the closest borderline.

Dr Aceves asks all his patients to check with him every 10 days after surgery. I haven't kept up with this like I should due to laziness, Christmas holidays, and out of state company. I will have to do better.

Before surgery, Dr Aceves himself spent hours with me going over the procedure, answering questions, and assuring that I knew the risks as well as the benefits of the surgery. I was given a complete written (in English) synopsis of everything that we talked about. I was also given a guideline for my diet through the first several months.

I would recommend Dr Aceves and the Mexicali Almater Hospital very highly. I went by myself, but, I didn't feel alone. I would rate the entire experience and all of the staff with a 10.

At this time I am seriously considering returning to Dr Aceves for my fills. I would like to keep in touch with the people that I met, and I was so comfortable with Dr Aceves that I really don't want to have to interview and go through the process of finding another Dr that I can trust for my fills.

Dr. Aceves explained the surgery in detail and answered all my questions to my satisfaction. His staff is wonderfully warm, caring and communication was not a problem. When I did not understand a word or their accent they were very patient about repeating what was said until I fully understood--and they were proactive about encouraging me to keep asking if I was unsure about the communication. Sergio is fluent in English and was present for before, during and after surgery to interpret for me as well as technicians and caregivers. The hospital is impeccably clean.

I was impressed with my e-mail correspondence with Dr. Aceves patient coordinator Nina. She was always prompt, informative, and courteous with her replys. I decided to proceed with Dr. Aceves, but have to admit that I was a little aprehensive because I was going to Mexico, and we have all heard the horror stories. The minute I meet Dr. Aceves and his wonderful staff, I was completely reassured I had made the right decision. He was so down to earth, approachable, informative, competent, ect. I only wish our doctors here in the states had such a great bed sidemanner. He completely made sure I understood every aspect of my surgery from the surgery itself through the aftercare. I have been so impressed that I would definetly use him again and would recommend him to anyone considering lap-band surgery.

My only negative would be that if you are hot-natured, you should request a fan before going there, or bring one with you.

My first impression was that this man knows what he is doing simply by looking at his website. There were not wheel and deal prices or cluttered advertisements, Dr. Aceves is first concerned about getting the information out to his patients and potential patients. He has been certified by INAMED which only 8 of 10 doctors in Mx have that, and he has had the same training as the doctors here in the US. What really impressed me was his time as a doctor in bariatrics, especially in the laproscoptic technique which is about 7 years.

His patient cooridinator Nina is awesome. She is very quick to answer any questions via email or telephone. We have a forum online and she is there giving advice, answering questions and giving LOTS of support both pre-ops and post-ops. I've heard that the rest of the staff is very professional and that the hospital is very clean and well kept.

Dr. Aceves is very caring and he has a strict regiment that he wants his patients to follow so they obtain the maximum weightloss SAFELY!!! He emphasizes that this is a tool, and that diet/exercise is very crucial to the weightloss management as well as how we "Think" about food. I believe you have to keep in regular contact for up to a year, via email/telephone. He offers 1 year free fills for his patients, though many live far away and few are able to make trips back to Mx. However, he does provide information for those that are unable to come to Mx for fills on which doctors in their local area accept his work. From I've heard many of the US doctors are very impressed by his work, once they understand the situation they have a better impression of the work done in Mexico. Dr. Aceves has a very structured pre-op diet for those that need their liver to shrink alittle so it is easier to operate as well as a structure post-op, they even give out information about the type of foods you can have.

Since, I have yet to have the surgery (Jan 27, 2006 is the date), I can say that what I have heard from many of his patients that he rates a 9 out of 10...I mean no one is perfect but he is darn close to it. I've heard how polite and courteous he is to the patient and their family and his bedside manner is ACES!

As well as addressing risks/complications: it's all on his webiste: www.mexicolapband.com

Again, this is based on my research of Dr. Aceves, I will post my own experience as soon as I come home from the surgery. Till then if you have any questions go to www.mexicolapband.com email and you can find out for yourself :)

Hi everyone! I would just like to tell you about my wonderful experience while having my lapband surgery. A doctor in Mexico referred him to me. So I did some homework and could only find good results. So off I flew to San Diego on July 25,2005. A driver was there to meet me. Ernesto is his name, a nice man who was like a tour guide through the mountains. Two hours later we arrived at the Almater Hospital were I met Yolanda my coordinator and she saw to it that all my tests were done. After that I was swept off to the Hotel were I spent the rest of the night. A few hours later Yolanda came with a antibiotic and shortly I was off to sleep. The next morning Yolanda came to pick me up to go to the hospital were they started my IV and then I met Dr. Aceves. At this time he told me all the goods and bads about the surgery. Which made me feel real comfortable because it wasn't all sugar coated. Dr. A. speaks perfect English so I completely understood everything that was going to happen. Finally I was taken into surgery and Sergio my head nurse held my hand til I fell asleep.
About five hours later I awoke in my hospital room and never once did I have to ask for pain reliever the nurses were always there before I even needed it. Dr. Aceves and Sergio checked on me 3 to 4 times a day. I have never seen that in the states. Always willing to listen and answer questions that I had. The second day while resting in my bed I watched the cleaning lady and she washed he floor outside of my room 6 times that day. I have never seen the cleanliness that was in this hospital.
Finally Dr. did the bariatric swallow xray and let me watch how the liquid was going down, so I would know everything was working. After that off to the airport and home.
All in all I can not say one bad thing about my experience and can only tell you if you are thinking of having the surgery put your mind a ease if you pick Dr. Aceves.

Dr. Aceves came across as very professional in our first meeting. His staff was great and they did everything they could to keep me happy. I had some minor complications after surgery and he called me daily (2-3times) until I was better. I have never had a Dr. personally call me to check up on me but he did. I would reccommend him to anyone.

DR.ACEVES WAS A WONDERFUL, CARING SURGEON. HE IS VERY COMPREHENSIVE AND CAUTIOUS IN HIS TREATMENT. HE MADE ME FEEL COMPLETELY AT EASE AND HAS AN OUTSTANDING BEDSIDE MANNER. HIS ENTIRE TEAM IS FIRST RATE AND IS THERE FOR YOU 24/7. I HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED THIS KIND OF CARE ANYWHERE IN THE U.S. I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND HIM TO ANYONE CONSIDERING WLS SURGERY!!