Debra Davis-Merritt Bariatric Surgeon M.D.

My first impression; she is very confident, caring and friendly.

I feel my first impression was correct.

The staff was very helpful and friendly also.

I can't say that there was anything I did not like about Dr. Davis, she took her time to answer all my questions (whole page list), and she didn't seem rushed.

Dr. Davis is very informative and matter-of-fact. She has alot of experience (22 yrs) and success under her belt (no fatalities, leaks).

She stresses the need for aftercare and did discuss this with me. She explained the steps I will take once my surgery is complete.

Dr. Davis is with Kaiser and Kaiser has a great structured aftercare program. It is basically a continuation of the pre-surgery weight management program.

She addressed the most common risks and did emphasize the fact that they consider this to be a permanent surgery.

I am very impressed with Dr. Davis, I was assigned one of three surgeons at Kaiser and am very happy about the fact that I got Dr. Davis.

I feel that she is competent in both sugical competence and bedside manner. These are my impressions after my consultation, I will not see Dr. Davis again until the day of surgery.

My first impression of Dr. Debra Davis-Merritt is that she is a highly skilled surgeon. A little clinical, but seems to know what she is doing, and that's what matters to me. Her office staff is very efficient, but since it is Kaiser, who really knows if it's HER office staff? Dr. Davis-Merritt was very good at answering all 20 of my questions. She seemed a tad bit offended by the more serious ones, but answered them just the same. At this point in time I would rate my surgeon as a 7-10. At 9 months out with a horrendous scar and no further contact with her, I would rate her a 4-10. Her anatomical know-how is first rate. Her compassion is nil. I have a massive scar and I think it might be because this is a surgery she does not wish to perform. Otherwise, the close wouldn't have been so ragged. It was not a good job. I thought Kaiser emphasized aftercare quite a bit. I was wrong. Kaiser doesn't even know about the absorption trouble with calcium carbonate and how calcium citrate is much easier on post-ops. Once your surgery is done, it's up to you to learn everything. The only decent aftercare they provide is the monthly support group and your 3 months checkups.

After my surgery I would say, Dr. Davis-Merritt is anatomically accurate, but her compassion, bed-side manner and closing skills leave much to be desired.

Sometimes, it seemed as though I was of less surgical importance because it was WLS. She is not a bariatric surgeon, but a general surgeon and seems to resent having to do such a "worthless" procedure.

Dr. Davis-Merritt definitely has technical know-how on the important parts, her stapling and closing skills are not good. However, the surgery has worked perfectly.

Kaiser has an aftercare program for all post-ops, just make sure to know that you are responsible for getting all the important info.

Dr. Davis-Merritt didn't address the risks until I asked questions. Then she was very good at answering although I got the impression she wasn't happy about the questions I asked.

I would rate her 4-10 simply because she doesn't want to do the surgery and it shows.

Her surgical competence was excellent, but her bedside manner was appalling. And I have a terrible scar left. However, because she performed this surgery for me, I have a life that I never dreamed could happen. For that I have to thank her.