Bradley J. Needleman Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

1/30/03-
Talked to OSU today. I was told I would be receiving my date for consult with Dr. Needleman next week!!! Could this process be any longer??!? I'll keep everyone posted! Thanks for the support. 3/18/03- I finally met with Dr. Needleman today. He was so nice and completely honest about everything. I told him I would lie down on the floor and have the surgery now if he had an extra hour. He laughed!! Surgery date is May 21st and I am 100% comfortable with him being by my side.

DR NEEDLEMAN WAS VERY NICE AND CONFIDENT AND EVERYTHING I WANT IN A SURGEON, ESPECIALLY ONE THAT WILL BE PLAYING AROUND WITH MY STOMACH. HIS STAFF WAS VERY NICE AND LAID BACK, EVERYONE SO FAR AT OSU HAVE BEEN AWESOME.....I WILL HAVE SURGERY TOMORROW AND WILL LET YOU KNOW HOW THE HOSPITAL STAY PART GOES!!

wonderful doctor...has a bunch of information...and believe it or not..even knew more than i did after my two years of research...lol

I have only met Dr. Needleman once so far. I had been told that I would have Dr. Muscarella, so I was a little surprised when Dr. Needleman's office called me to schedule an appointment.
My husband and I were very pleased with the initial visit. The doctor sat down at my eye level and maintained eye contact with me through the entire discussion. He described the surgery in great detail, even drawing pictures!
His office staff seemed nice. The nurse (I don't remember her name.) kept calling me "Honey". That was kind of annoying, since she didn't even know me, but that was her way of being friendly.
I would say that the thing I like least so far about Dr. N is the great amount of time that it took before I even got to meet him. I began working on this in August of 2002. I know that doesn't sound like a really long time, but I'm also having another surgery along with the RNY. I learned in September that I needed a complete hysterectomy due to very irregular periods. My OB/GYN wants to coordinate with the gastro surgery. So, I've been putting up with "menstral fun" all this time. I guess that's why I've been impatient.
I did not discuss aftercare at great length with Dr. N. I was prepared, however, during my teaching sessions with a dietician.
Dr. N was very open about the risks involved in his part of my surgery. He told me what could go wrong and what he would do then.
At this point, I would rate Dr. Needleman as competent and impressive. I hope I can still say that post-op!

Dr. Needleman is a very kind man, but speaks very quickly, remains standing and did not maintain eye contact, which I must admit gave me the impression that he is aloof, which he is NOT. It just makes me nervous. I'm used to my family doctor who sits about 2-3 feet from me and maintains eye-contact. Some of you may think this is petty, but it affects my comfort level. THIS IS JUST A PERSONAL OPINION!!! I know several women who have nothing but high praise for him. In fact, due to continued port pain, I AM having Dr. N. do another surgery on me; I will have my port moved from the abdomen to the sub-sternal area on 2/6/03, so please realize that I do not think he is a "bad" doctor. His staff members are generally polite and helpful.

I met Dr Needleman today and he was very upfront about the risks involved. I am 400 lbs and he has agreed to do the laproscopic procedure. He made sure to emphasize how important and thorough OSU's aftercare and prep for surgery are. I was impressed with him and just waiting to be cut now. :):)

DR.NEEDLEMAN WAS WONDERFUL.ANSWERED ALL OF MY QUESTIONS.THE ONLY NEGATIVE I HAVE IS THAT HIS OFFICE STAFF WAS NOT VERY GOOD ABOUT RETURNING PHONE CALLS AND I FELT DR.NEEDLEMAN SHOULD HAVE SEEN ME MORE IN THE HOSPITAL.SAW MORE OF THE RESIDENTS INSTEAD.OVERALL WOULD USE HIM AGAIN AS MY DOCTOR.

I have not met Dr. Needleman yet.
I have gone through nutrition classes and staff is great. I am waiting for surgery approval. I was approved when I was going to go through the bariatric treatment center, but changed my mind to OSU and I guess I have to go though all the red tape again.

They have aftercare and nutrition classes before surgery. I am very impressed with that.

UPDATE, I MET HIM 12-30-02, HE WAS GREAT.
VERY NICE AND SEEMED TO REALLY CARE AND SEEMED TO KNOW WHAT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT.

Dr. Needleman at Ohio State University is a fellowhip director to train surgeons in the laparoscopic technique of the gastric bypass. As I am a nurse practitioner I only wanted the best surgeon at a highly reputable hospital, and I got both!!! It took a lot of research for me to trust my guts with a surgeon for an elective weight loss surgery at the young age of 30.

so far I like him allot