Christine J. Ren-Fielding Bariatric Surgeon MD, FACS, FASMBS

my first impression was great. she as well as her assistant, giovanni, made me feel very comfortable. they talked to me as a friend, used medical terms as i would be able to understand. i have only had 1 visit with her so far, and all i can say is so far, so good! i also spoke to 2 of her patients that i saw in the waiting room and they are just so pleased with her and her stakk. one guy came in and just hugged the staff and made himself at home! he had surgery in december and is down 100+lbs! he told my friend and i (we are scheduled together for surgery, same day!) that it is the best thing he has ever done. he also said he met with 2 other drs and wasnt as happy with them as dr. ren.she was also very forward. she told us point blank, this is major surgery and could die from it. she was very up front with mortality rates as well as things that could go wrong. i was very scared, but very happy that she wasnt trying to cover up the bad with the good. she also made it very clear that it is going to take a lot on my part also. overall, so far i give her and her stakk a 10+++!

Everyone at Dr. Ren's office is GREAT! At my initial consultation I spent about an hour thoroughly discussing my medical and dieting history with Gio, Dr. Ren's nurse practitioner. He was very patient and kind. He made it a point to put my mind at ease. After meeting with Gio I met with Dr. Ren for over 1/2 an hour. My frist impression was that she is a confident, down to earth physician. I felt that she really knew her stuff. After explaining the BPD/DS in great detail - both the good and bad outcomes - she answered all of my questions. I was very comfortable with both Dr. Ren, Gio, and the office staff. I am very glad that I found Dr. Ren before going with someone else.

So far, the office has been quick to respond and Christine answers her email personally, which I like. I have my consultation with her on June 28 and am looking forward to it.

Dr. Ren and her staff are kind, incredibly responsive and competent. I especially want to mention Rick, the "Insurance Master". He is such a sweet man, and like the others on Dr. Ren's staff, seems to have an extraordinary understanding of the process and the anxiety which the patient feels. Gio, the Nurse Practitioner, is a totally affable, "real" down-to-earth person. I trust them all with my life. Dr. Ren is extremely intellegent and pays particular attention to your level of understanding of the procedure. I will reserve my opinion on bedside manner until after surgery, but my guess is that I will continue to be treated very well by this extremely talented group.

My first impression of Dr. Ren was that she
was a very caring person who truly wanted to
help me. She was very down to earth and made
me feel very comfortable. She answered all
of my questions and addressed the risks involved
with the surgery. I think she must have spent
an hour and a half with me for my first
consult and never did I feel rushed in any
way.She does emphasize aftercare and the
importance of it.

My very first impression of Dr. Ren was that she really seemed to care and was really interested in helping me. Any time I have a question either Dr. Ren or her staff are ready to answer questions for me. She answers my questions on email within 1 or 2 days which I find really great!!!! When my surgery had to be postponed because of suspected trouble with my heart her nurse practitioner, Gio Dugay, really tried to make me feel better and explained over and over again to both my mother and myself what the suspected problem was. When I was ready to reschedule I must of made them crazy but they worked with me until I made up my mind about the date.

Dr. Ren has a support group program for both post and pre-op patients. Which I have not yet attended, but I will attend the next one.

Dr. Ren explained both the risks and benefits of the 3 surgeries, and we decided on the bpd/ds laparascopically.

I so far rate Dr. Ren and her staff very, very highly. I would recommend her to anyone looking for a surgeon.

Dr Ren has responded to every email I send to her. She has answered every question I have put to her. And some of them were very tough ones. I have not made a final decision to have surgery as my doctor wants me to try the Adkins diet for 1 year before he will refer me for any surgery. If I do have surgery I will have it at New York University Medical Center as my brother works there and highly recommends Dr Ren.

I am very impressed with Dr. Ren and her staff. She did not seem to be in a hurry during my consultation. She explained everything indepth and answered any questions I had. Her nurser practioner is very helpful and polite. The only thing I would recommend is know ahead of time what your insurance wants and stay on top of the insurance approval. I went to the psychologist she recommended as well and the specialist doing the endoscopy. I am glad I did.

My first impression of Dr. Ren was that she was very warm and personable and that never changed. I would say the same thing regarding her nurse, Gio, and her receptionist, Lisa. Her entire office staff is exceptionally nice.
Dave and I flew into NYC expecting to have the DS surgery with Dr. Ren on March 30th as scheduled. But when I told Gio about a lump on my neck as he was going over my medical history, he was immediately concerned and asked Dr. Ren to look at it. She immediately ordered a CTscan and sent me to a neck cancer surgeon who took 5 biopsies (all in the same day!). Even though I had told my pcp here at home about the lump on 2 separate office visits, he said it was nothing to be concerned about. I'm very grateful that Dr. Ren and Gio took it seriously and moved quickly to get it diagnosed. My surgery with Dr. Ren was of course cancelled and Dave & I decided to go back home to MI to await the biopsy results. After 7 long days of waiting we got the biopsy results back this past Wed. and it is thyroid cancer which has spread apparently into the lymph nodes and chest cavity. Dr. Ren researched and found a surgeon for me here in MI, who I have an appt. with in 10 more days.
The only negative that I can think of at all, and it is not with Dr. Ren herself, was regarding an insurance problem. Rick, Dr. Ren's insurance person, told me the surgery was approved. But just 3 weeks before surgery Rick told me that Dr. Ren would require a $2000. upfront fee, because although Dr. Ren apparently participates with BC/BS, there are at least 6 different BC/BS in New York, and she doesn't participate with the particular one that was handling the billing for my BC/BS contract. Rick apologized for not telling me this earlier, I did wonder when he was planning on telling me. Knowing there was no way for us to come up with $2000 in 3 weeks I asked Dr. Ren if there was anything she could do. She graciously agreed to take $1000 up front instead of $2000. I was very grateful to her for this reduction, but we still had to struggle to come up with $1000 more than what we had planned for.(Because the surgery was cancelled I was given back the $1000. I paid $375 for the consult.)One reason I mention this insur. problem is because this site cautions that 100% positive posts can be suspect and I seem to be a walking billboard for Dr. Ren and do not wish others reading this to question my sincerity. I would imagine that any surgeon/staff would have some negatives and well as positives, as do we all as human beings.
My experience with Dr. Ren was more than excellent and I would recommend her to anyone considering weight loss surgery. She cares about the whole person. I will be forever grateful to her and Gio for caring for me and moving so quickly to get my lump diagnosed.

Your first impression of Dr. Ren is that she is extremely personable and friendly. There wasn't a moment of discomfort the entire time we talked.

Dr. Ren's office staff is professional and personable. I was just comfortable with everything during my office visit. Not once did I feel they were too busy for me and they were very organized, two things I have found lacking in other doctors offices.

Gio did a thorough history and physical and is very sensitive to "our" needs. It was more like a fun visit, but he was very concerned about how obesity has effected my life and the lives of others. His compassion is sincere.

After spending more than an hour with me, Gio transferred me to Dr. Ren and I was SO pleased I cannot express it. I had many questions and they dealt with every possible surgery out there. She went over each one and explained how each is different and the pros and cons of them. After spending an hour and a half with me I really felt this surgeon was the right one for me!

3/23/01 - Dr. Ren called me herself to see if I could move my surgery up two days sooner. Of course I said yes! In the two days since I'd seen her I had come up with a few more questions and I also shared some of my fears with her. She listened, answered my questions, and talked with me about the life changing aspects of the procedure. It was so nice to have a doctor really listen to me! She spent an hour on the phone with me, what a wonderful bedside manner!