Donald Hess Bariatric Surgeon MD, FACS

Well I've been contemplating this surgery for 5 years now. Finally, I've come to realize I can't do this on my own, I need surgery. Tried the Atkins Diet and it worked great, lost 130 lbs in 8 months, and took 6 months to gain it all plus more back.
Met with Doctor Hess and some of his team @ Boston Medical Center 9-8-10 went over alot of things about the surgery. Now I've got a one on one with him on 9-27-10. We will discuss my options and hopefully schedule all my test and get an expected date. Already been cleared by my Primary care, Cardiologist and the Shrink.. WAITING Pretty nervous but also excited.

I have my 1st appointment in Jan 2010-rnThank goodness!!!rnHeard he was great!!!!

I just recently had lap RNY, and cannot say enough good things about Dr. Hess and his staff. This man is a miracle worker. If you're considering him as your surgeon, proceed with your eyes closed. I have 200% trust in this man.

Dr. Hess is amazing. He is kind, non-judgemental, and really puts you at ease. He has a great personality and great sense of humor.rnrnHis success rate is outstanding. He's done well over 500 surgeries with no complications, and from what I know...not many complications. Considering I just had major surgery two weeks ago, and I'm back to work and feeling great, I'd say amazing is the best word to describe him.rnrnThe whole team is fantastic - Tony is wonderful and very easy to get in touch with when you have questions, Felicia is also great, and the whole pre-op team was fun and made my surgery experience really wonderful. I mean, we were LAUGHING before surgery...joking it up!rnrnThere just aren't enough words to describe how happy I am that I did this, and that I chose Dr. Hess and his team. :)

Dr. Lautz is a warm man, with a good sense of humor and a gentle, caring bedside manner. He does not glaze over any risks, gives direct eye contact, and provides detailed answers to any questions you have. He listens beyond what you say to understand who you are and provides care according the whole person, not just \"the next patient to roll by\". The medical support team is excellent, the program is optional but complete if you take advantage of it. The office staff was amazing.rnrnI switched to Dr. Donald Hess at BMC for my aftercare, and I wish now I had been there all along. Dr. Hess is very patient and down-to-earth, engaging and easy to understand. His staff is warm and friendly, and clearly love what they are doing. Wendy Anderson is the nutritionist, and I am amazed at her understanding of food addiction and personalization of diet to fit individual needs and preferences.

I truly have no negative things to say about him.rnrnI chose him because he has an extremely high success rate for this surgery.rnrnRight from the start I was very comfortable with him. He is very personable and knowledgeable and helped me choose which type of surgery that would be best for me.rnrnHe is very meticulous regarding aftercare because he truly cares about the welfare of his patients. rnrnThe office staff was pretty good. One guy, Tony, is great. I had problems with another staff member, maybe it's because she got tired of me calling.rnrnI can't rate him anything but a 10. Truly!rnrn

HE was amazing, the staff was great they went above and beyond expectations. if you call with a question they keep you on the phone and ask no waiting 2hours for a return call. he has a wonderful bedside manner and surgical competence is amazing.

Dr. Hess is a wonderful, caring, compassionate person, with lots of experience performing bypass surgery (maybe 1000 surgeries?). His program is wonderful, organized for success. You go through all the necessary prescreening, including psychological screening and nutrition training, right there at Boston Medical Center. Everyone knows you in his office and takes care of you every step of the way.rnrnHis office staff is very knowledgeable and helpful. When I was in pre-op, I overheard a nurse telling a nurse who was training for that floor, \"You can always count on Dr. Hess's office to have every piece of medical information or paperwork you'll ever need right here in the file.\" rnrnIn terms of risks, they were clearly outlined for me. When I asked him, overall, how risky was the surgery, he replied \"not nearly as risky as remaining obese for the rest of your life.\" Having been diabetic for 15 years, I could certainly relate to that. rnrnHis office is VERY strict about aftercare. Before surgery, you must sign a \"contract\" with his office, agreeing to make all aftercare and nutritional counseling appointments before they'll approve you for surgery. They also have support groups set up for bypass patients. He is a big believer in waiting as long as possible to move on to solid foods, and went into a lot of detail explaining why. It all made a lot of sense, which made it so much easier to comply with. Everything he does is designed to educate you, make things as easy as possible, and limit possible complications as much as possible. (His rate of complications is MUCH lower than the national average.)rnrnHis bedside manner is warm and compassionate. His skills and competence are outstanding. I can't say enough good things about Dr. Hess. Honestly, I would have to think very hard to come up with anything negative to say about his practice. Maybe the length of time between when you apply for the surgery and when you actually have it? It was a year. That's it, really.rnrn The whole Boston Medical Center Weight Management program is first rate.

excellent. I was very comfortablernIt has not changedrnexcellent and very helpfulrnHe was extremely friendly and positivernvery encouragingrnvery muchrnnot surernexplained everything in detailrnexcellentrnboth

Dr Hess is the best!!rnI was so scared about having this surgery done but his gentle nature and kind smile put me right at ease. You can tell that he really cares about his patients. He has a \"Fellow\" named Dr Bruener (not sure of the spelling) but he was wonderful as well!! rnI would recommend Dr Hess and his team to anyone considering the surgery.