David Oliak Bariatric Surgeon MD, FACS

When I first saw Dr.Oliak at the seminar Jan 29th 2004. He seemed very knowledgeable,and caring about people having a new start as far as living a healthy life.

As far as my impression changing overtime, it never did I seemed even more comfortable once him and I had a one on one meeting at the office.

To be quit honest, I LOVE DR. OLIAK he is AWESOME,He is not only a Doctor, but he is like a Friend too..He really cares about his patients. He does not look at the as money coming in, he looks at them as people who really want to be healthy and to live a longer life, and he is eager to help them at that..I believe that GOD picked him out for me, cause GOD knew how scared I was, so God picked out his best and that is Dr.Oliak I am 26 years old and I had my surgery 3/17/04 and I am feeling really good.
He had EXCELLENT!!! bedside manners..He answered EVERY question that I had..even if it was completly off, he still answered it. He was at the hospitial EVERYDAY!!!

My overall rate of Dr.Oliak is a 10+, A+, 110%...If your reading this Dr. Oliak I LOVE YOU DOC, and I truley believe that GOD picked YOU out from all the rest...Thank you Doc, and Thank you GOD, for my healthy new fresh start in Life with my Kids, Hubby, and Family..

As far as the office staff, they are really nice and helpful anyway possible. So if you go to Coastal ask for DOCTOR OLIAK!!!!

Dr. Oliak is very straight forward and very knowledgeable, always allows ample time for questions, one does NOT get the feeling that they are being rushed or dismissed as you might with a TYPICAL surgeon.
I would rate Oliak an 10 out of 10, very good bedside manner and very personable and knowledgeable.
Saw Dr. Oliak for the inevitable drain removal, he remains concerned, unhurried, and really able to answer all questions.

I wasn't really sure about him at first.
After the first appointment I was very happy and comfortable with him doing my surgery.
It was great at first. Then they had a change of staff due to there affiliation with Chapman. The staff is now hired through the hospital and not the office. So appointments seem to take longer, and you have to keep on top of them to do there job.
I think he is over booked.
He emphasizes it greatly.
yes, and there is a support group that meets weekly in two locations.
Before you receive your first appointment it is required to go to a seminar that is very informative. It is also required for you to attend 1 support group meeting. All your questions and concerns are answered before you step into the office.
He is a excellent Doctor and have and will continue to recommend him.
Surgical competence for me.

He Not like a lot of Doctors that just move you along, to see the next patients. He cares, BIG times. He was there every day I was in the Hospital. I had know problems asking him the smalless of questions or needs. If in the future I would need to have a tummy tuck, he would be the one. I trust him.

I was so impressed with Coastal Center for Obesity. The friendly professionalism was amazing. Dr. Oliak was quite easy to talk to. I met him at a seminar in San Clemente, where he was personable and comfortable answering all the questions.
His program is far more strict than any other that I have heard about so far. There is a test prior to surgery that must be passed or surgery will be rescheduled. This impressed me. The staff shared my excitement and has been available to me without complaint.
The hospital stay at Chapman Hospital was more like a trip to a day spa. The nurses were awesome. Once again, everyone shared my excitement.
The only suggestion that I have to improve the hospital stay is to have the pain shots given on the same side as the drain is on. That way there is a good side to lay on.

My first impression of Dr. Oliak was that he was carring and that he had experience in laproscopic surgery. And that was what I was looking for. The staff at the Coastal Center for Obesity is all positive. They were supportive from my fist meeting and at anytime I have questions they are but a phone call away. I developed an infection after my drain tube was taken out and I did not know what was going on, I was scared, I called Dr Oliak's exchange because of course it was after hours on a Friday night, Dr. Oliak was on the phone with me in 5 minutes seeing what I needed. I was very thankful. With having no other problems everything else in my recovery went smooth. It just took me 2 weeks to get completely rid of the infection. The doctor was completely up front with me about the risks in the surgery and what could occur, but I hadn't ever talked to anyone that had gotten an infection like I did until after the fact, I talked to others at my support group that had the same thing. I would rate my doctors care excellent and he was always very kind. He took his time to explain and make sure I understood, and if I didn't he tried to answer all of my concerns. This is a very big step for anyone and you need the support of your doctor, I say ask as many questions as you need to until you are satisfied with the answer. I asked and my questions were answered.
Tena

The following comments are my personal experience and I can not speak for anyone else or their experiences:

Dr. Oliak was terrific! He offers excellent care, provides great information, answers all my questions with patience and care. The office staff is super caring and friendly. Future patients, be very specific with your insurance company when working with Dr. Oliak or Dr. Owens about what procedures you need your PCM's referral for. Not everything is included when you are approved for surgery, especially with Tricare Prime! Watch out for anesthia and psychological evaluations to be charged if not referred properly.
Dr. Oliak has been wonderful after sugery. I am currently 6 months post-op and have called his pager system twice. I always received a VERY prompt return call and even though I was not in a life or death situation, he was always calm and reassuring, answering my questions & concerns. He was definitely an expert in laproscopic gastric bypass and was excellent with patient care as well. Rating from 1-10, 10 being outstanding, I give Dr. Oliak and the entire Coastal Obesity staff a 10+!! Truely the best decision was to have the surgery, the next best decision was having through their program. They also offer tons of support post-op including a great support group.

First impression was that he was awfully young. He still looks awfully young, but very competent in his field. The office staff were friendly and helpful while I was there, but not very good on follow thru over the phone. I was very impressed with the amount of screening and verifying that their program required. I had to attend a support group prior to having surgery; read all about the risks and complications and take a test to verify that I knew possible outcomes and problems that many patients experience post-op; I had a psych eval; and there was a madatory meeting to go over the procedures that were performed by the practice and the complications and risks. They emphasized after-care tremendously, in fact part of their pre-op info states that should you become uninsured or unable to pay for follow-up visits after the surgery they still want to see you to track you and they stressed the importance of attending support groups. Also they arranged for a nutrition consult after 1 month post-op. They also gave me plenty of info regarding what to expect even while I was still in hospital prior to the surgery. I think that surgical competence is probably more important, but if a doctor does not have a good bedside manner, you may mis-think that he is not competent. I will say that I would give Dr. Oliak 9/10 rating but his staff would only get a 7/10 and the medical center, Chapman Medical Center would also get a 9/10 as I feel they took very good care of me.

I went to Dr. Oliak because he had performed the surgery on a friend of mine. He is a very kind and knowledgeable surgeon. He spends time making sure all your questions and concerns are answered to your satisfaction. He also made sure I was fully aware of all the risk involved as well as the importance of aftercare. I never once felt he was rushing to get to the next patient. I felt "I" was his only concern the entire time he was with me, and not just pre surgery but all follow up visits post surgery as well! My surgery went very well and my scars are minimal six months post surgery. I would highly recommend Dr. Oliak to anyone considering weight loss surgery. On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give him an 11+ both for his surgical competency and bedside manner. The only negative thing I experienced was involving the phones and trying to get through to specific office staff. This happened in the beginning and I have noticed vast improvements in this area since my surgery.

First impression was great -- kind caring and not bad looking, either!
Only gotten better. He is my personal angel!
The office staff at Coastal Center for Obesity leaves a lot to be desired. THey tend to not return calls, and forget to follow-up and pass messages on to others.
Least liked about Dr Oliak would be the office staff.
He is great -- only wonderful things to say about him.
After care is a must, and the Dr's at Coastal know it. They encourage all patients to follow through with the regular support meetings. They also follow up with routine check-ups for years after surgery.
He let me know all the risks, and spent hte time to answer questions and have real 'discussions' with me not just short, standard answers.
Overall rating for Dr Oliak is a 6-star rating (out of possible 5 stars)
Both aspects are wonderful!