Lawrence Schrock Bariatric Surgeon M.D.

I WAS VERY IMPRESSED WITH DOC SCHROCK FROM THE BEGINNING. I HAVE DEVELOPED A PARATHYROID TUMOR AND HE HAS WORKED CLOSELY WITH THE ENDO DOC IN SPOKANE. I AM THINKING ABOUT HAVING DOC SCHROCK DO MY TUMMY BEFORE HE RETIRES. HE IS ONLY WORKING PART TIME NOW. HE IS GETTING READY TO RETIRE. I TOTALLY TRUST HIM WITH MY LIFE AND WITH MY TUMMY INSIDE AND OUT SO WE WILL SEE IF HE HAS TIME. I FEEL TRUELY BLESSED TO HAVE HIM AS MY SURGEON.

When I met with Dr. Lauter he was very kind,and thorough about wls surgery. He went over everything about the different types of wls surgery. Also talked alot about after care with a nutritionist. I had no questions unanswered by Dr.Lauter.
I thought his office staff was pretty good.
I would rate Dr.Lauter a 10 out of 10. I have not yet had the surgery, but had a consultation and it did go very well for me.

Well My surgeon now is Dr.Schrock in spokane as my insurance won't let me go to Dr.Lauter.
I had my appointment with Dr. Schrock on Nov. 2 - 05 he was very informative and answered all questions i had and ones I didn't have. Consultation with Dr.Schrock went very well for me.

dr. schrock was very nice and spent alot of time explaing his procedures and answered all of my questions. he seems to be very good at what he does. his staff was wonderful and very helpfull. he did talk about after care and that he would like to keep in contact for at least 5 years with numerous visits.will get back with you on surgical competence and bedside manner. my first impression was great though.

Dr. Schrock was quiet and right to the point. He answered any questions I had, but he didn't really have a whole lot of personality. I picked Dr. Schrock because he has been doing WLS for almost 30 years, and I prefer experience above the chat.

I was extremely happy with Dr. Schrock. I came thru with no problems, and knew when I went under, I was in very capable hands. He has been doing these for a very long time, and is well respected as a surgeon among his peers. My family doctor agreed, he was the man to do it.

He is not one for conversation, but does cover everything you need to know. He was very thorough, just not real personable. I didn't care about bedside manner, I just wanted to make sure whoever cut on me, knew what they were doing. I'd take him again in a heartbeat.

As many have noted, Dr. Schrock probably won't be doing any sets on amatuer night at the Funny Bone. But that's OK with me. He was all business with me and that is just the way I like to deal with fellow professionals. I arrived at our initial consultation with many, many questions, at least one of which took him a little by surprise, but he patiently answered them all. From what I could gather Dr. Schrock enjoys a good reputation as a skilled and experienced bariatric surgeon and my experience with him would not indicate otherwise. Dr. Schrock and his staff have been courteous, responive to my inquiries, and have conducted themselves as professionals in their dealings with me. Again, much appreciated here. If there is one thing I might add to my experience so far it would be more time with a nutritionist, periodically along the way. As I progress I do find that I have questions a nutritionist could help with. Dr. Schrock does offer a support group but it would be a long drive for me and, personally, I'm not really a group kind of person anyway. Attendance isn't required and frankly I like being treated like an adult. I can find support, as Frank would say, my way.

he new his field.my impression has not changed great staff, care and stright forwardness, they would be in great hands,always checking to see how you are doing,yes good after care plan,gave me all the in and outs of possibility about the process,overall service great,i would have to say any one in dr.schrock hands are in good hands hands with 20 years of learning more and more about bariatric surgery

My first impression was good, he was to the point, and a good listener and answered all the questions I seemed to ask.The office staff was very nice and everything ran smoothly.Dr Schrock is a quiet man, that is very knowledgable and caring.He has been doing this surgery for apx 18 years and has profected his way of doing it.I would rate him a 10 overall, with surgical competence being also a 10.

When one talks about surgeons, one typically does not use the words "Passion," "Compassion," or "Love." It is for this reason I am most compelled to write about my experiences with Lawrence Schrock, MD.
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I have only Medicare, and in my shopping for a surgeon to do a gastric bypass, I discovered a hell of a lot of self-interest on the part of surgeons. It was, for most surgeons, a job issue of payment. Medicare doesn't always pay on time, and so, 99.999% of the surgeons I'd met flatly refused to consider surgery with me, even though my parents agreed to pay for the other 20%. These surgeons' emphasis was only focused on "When do I get paid?"

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Then someone told me about Dr. Lawrence Schrock.


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You have to understand, I'm on social security disability income due to recurrent ulcerations (most commonly with staph infections) of the lower limbs, a problem of circulation that was due, to my knowledge, as a defect of birth, for I was born XXY and have Klinefelter's Syndrome. Thus, I didn't think myself a great candidate to begin, being that I was 451 pounds (I use an Invacare walker when walking long distances (the walker is green so I dubbed it "Johnny" so I could call it "Johnny Walker Green")) when I first began to seriously research a surgeon to take my case. I also only had Medicare, and thus was worried that the care and surgery I could get would be the worst quality out there as everyone seemed to reject me.

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Here are all the truths to make my life the way it is today.

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I scheduled an appointment in January 2004 through the Spokane Surgical Group for a mid-March appointment with Dr. Schrock,. He was the only doctor who would take "Medicare Only." I suspected that he did so out of compassion. I believe you will come to agree with me.

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I asked if ever they had an earlier appointment opening, to let me know so I could get in earlier. They called me a few days later and suddenly, I had my first appointment on 12 February 2004.

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I brought my mom, Judy, and my wife, Jennifer, with me, and in the course of over an hour, Dr. Schrock answered every question we had, with deep detail that, from my work, I knew only could come from one who did his own research from year to year. He explained that he had been doing this surgery since the early 1980's, and in his logic on how he came to do what he does, he explained every answer for which I asked.


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My Number One Question that I had for this appointment was to ask how many people he'd lost in all these years on the operating table. "None," he replied, "and only two in all years, ever, due to complications with blood clots."


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My wife asked how soon we could get in, for we had a cruise vacation that my mom and dad had pre-paid for Jennifer and I to join them to Alaska beginning May 29th for a week out of Seattle. Thus, her question was to ask if I could get in with time to heal so I could go on the cruise? "No problem."

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The doctor asked for an "a1c" Blood test, to check my long-term diabetes. I passed with a 5.8, thus proving my diabetes management was working. This, along with a couple other tests, passed my approval to move to the act of scheduling the surgery. I then related how the surgeon had mentioned the "No Problem" about getting in before the cruise. The staff, through some strange coincidence, obtained me an April Fools Day, April 1st surgical date. Being that I do comedy, I saw this as an act of God, and leaped at the chance.

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I was taken into Sacred Heart Medical Center at 5:30am to the out-patient same-day surgery check-in room on the east side of the building. By 8:00am, I was in the surgery room, and somehow, with the help of the staff, was able to get myself onto the surgical table. It was really like the proof to myself that I was truly serious about this, and they helped me get on the table before beginning anesthesia.


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I awoke in a bed that would let me, of all things, elevate to a standing position, only to look down upon my chest and to see something that blew my mind. No Stitches and No Staples! "We use Super Glue, though it's called Derma Bond." This passion Dr. Schrock had for the act of surgery was another thing I now believe I will remember vividly to my dying day. It was the most beautiful thing I could see, for all these months, my only fear was that I would be battling staph infections throughout this healing process, as I have done so for over fifteen years.


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I was on a pain management program while in hospital. They first had me on a morphine drip, but once that ended, I had been on a one-tablet-every-12-hour regiment of Oxycontin for baseline pain, all through the duration of the rest of my hospital stay. If ever my pain broke above that level, I knew I could get one or two doses of an Oxycodone elixir (liquid, and a lot easier to swallow than the pill).


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Because I was determined, and because I had brought "Johnny" with me, I began walking starting my second day after surgery. By the fourth day, I had walked to the nurses station and back, had passed gas, had a bowel movement, and was on my way to recovery. Also, my blood sugar levels never tested below 108 or higher than 131 during the entire time I was there, so on April 5th, Dr. Schrock, who had visited me nearly every day, during my stay, came to bring some good news, and by the afternoon, I was released into the loving support of Jennifer.


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It is here that I made my one stupid mistake that might have cost me everything.


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At 2:33am, I awoke in my hotel room, where we determined to stay a night before leaving, with pain that established a new "ten" on the scale of one-to-ten, where ten is always determined as "The worst pain ever." So, I hurried to get my oxycontin tablet down, with a sip of water.


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An hour later, even with the pain relief of the tablet now in full gear, I had another "Ten," this time passing through the pain relief stratification and setting a whole new problem level. In a panic, I remembered all those days in hospital where they'd ask if I wanted one dose or two.


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I pulled out the bottle and, thinking my memory correct, I poured out and took two tablespoons of the elixir. As it happened, I discovered (while reading the label in the bathroom a half-hour later) that the prescription dosages had been written for teaspoons. All I can say is that it was a long night, and I kept myself awake for nearly all of it until I was certain that the drug had mostly passed so I wouldn't die.


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Once I had finally obtained some sleep, this next afternoon, we set out for the three-hour drive to Richland. As our air conditioning is on the blink, and the AC wasn't working, I simply sat in the passenger's seat and let Jennifer take me home.


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I had a pressing question based on what the doctor had said prior to my release, so I called Dr. Schrock's office on April 7th. Dr. Schrock himself called back with the answer, exposing his true love over us, his flock of patients, more than a passion, but as a healer, and as an angel.


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It's been just less than two weeks, and now my stitch-less wound looks so beautiful. Everyone who's seen it, including other physicians, have expressed wonder and delight at the expansive professionalism of Dr. Schrock, for not only did he take this on at Medicare Only, but also delivered the best surgery that any money could buy.


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Therefore, I must gratefully submit this passage to say that the best surgeon to which I will ever be grateful for showing compassion, passion, and love, high above the call of duty, I highly recommend Dr. Lawrence Schrock.

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I know that this website (ObesityHelp.com) wants me to include everything negative, but the fact is, I haven't a thing to say about the doctor except thank you!
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Submitted this 13th day of April, 2004,



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David I. Brager
scrypnosis.com

I met Dr. Schrock in 2002 and my first impression wasn't that good. He didn't seem very personable and wasn't very talkitive. I saw him again today, Jan. 20, 2004 and I liked him alot more. He is a very caring and gentle man. He answered all my questions and was very straight forward.

His office staff was nice.