Michael A. Snyder Bariatric Surgeon MD, FACS, FASMBS

Update 1/2/11

I had my sleeve converted to an RNY on 12/13/10. I am not quite three weeks out and am down about thirty pounds. I have felt really good from the beginning and am excited about my future. Thanks again Dr. Snyder!

I attended Dr. Snyder’s seminar in October 2007, his energy was incredible, along with a great sense of humor. I felt he truly understood obesity was more than eating and recognized it as a disease. Watching his face as one patient after another stood to talk about their experience told me a lot about how deeply he cares for his patients and how much he believes in what he is doing.

I can tell you Dr. Snyder will stick with you when things just aren’t going as you expect. I showed up for my first appointment and we all agreed I would have the gastric by-pass surgery. Life being what it is, we found I wasn’t strong enough for the by-pass surgery and talked about the lapband. I knew this was going to work! I had the surgery, and just to keep Dr. Snyder on his toes and life throwing another curve ball, I have an extra artery that did not allow for the placement of the lapband.

Needless to say, I pretty much figured I would be where I was for the rest of my life with no other alternatives. However, Dr. Snyder came in all upbeat and excited about a new surgery called the gastric sleeve. I started researching everything I could find on the gastric sleeve and felt like this was pretty much where I needed to go next. On June 9, 2008 at 10:00 a.m., I had the gastric sleeve procedure performed at Rose Hospital. I am not quite a week out and I feel better every day. The one down side is, there isn’t really a support group for the sleeve at this time, probably because I am his first gastric sleeve...lol.

I am very happy with Dr. Snyder and his staff. They are terrific people who are full of smiles. The only complaint I had was a delay in communication at times. It’s hard to keep in mind the staff needs to do research as well on a new procedure, it’s just hard to wait when it’s you and if that’s my biggest complaint they are doing something very right. Special Thanks to Dr. Snyder, Dolly, Carl, Kim, and Amanda for all of your support, I’m sure we will get to know each other much better over the coming months!

Hope it's ok to add to this post. I am 5 weeks out from my surgery and I feel GREAT! My blood pressure is way down, off of one medication, and my breathing is awesome! Went on vacation and didn't have to use oxygen to walk...woohoo!!! I am down about 46 pounds and have energy I haven't had in a very long time.

I have started a blog at www.obesityhelp.com/member/jagracer/

My first impression was that he was very confident, and rightfully so. My impression continued the same over time, as I saw the statistics of his results as well as the knowledge & professionalism of his staff. His office staff is uniformly warm, positive ,friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. I liked everything about him. Patients should know that he is well-spoken, comfortable in groups settings, and extremely self-confident. Some might wrongly think this is arrogance or self-importance, when actually it is just a very smart and capable guy expressing himself forthrightly. He has a structured aftercare program that is well defined and helpful. He explained clearly, in person and in writing, all of the risks. I would rate him as a 10 out 10 (where 1 is terrible and 10 is top of the game) - if I had his photo, I'd post it on my mantle. I believe his surgical competence and bedside manner are both great.

I have had no negative experiences with him or his staff.

Dr. Snyder has been great through the process so far. It is very nice to have the direct contact info for your surgeon. The staff has ben great, occasionally had to push to get the info I needed. The office has recently merged with the hospital and that has caused some confusing (and full of spelling and syntax errors) paperwork, they were able to clarify but would be nice to see a little more attention to detail. Overall very happy with the office and staff as well as the surgeon.

My first impression of Dr Snyder was that he was VERY knowlegeable with a sense of humor, he was sooo informative that by the time I got to my appointment with him I had no questions. His office staff was awesome!!! They helped me through the process, and are there for me if I need them!! I love them all!!! One of the reasons I chose Dr Snyder was he wants you to not only go thru your insurance plans guidlines, you also have to go thru his in order to have the surgery, I was going to go to another place in Ft Collins and even though they were nice and informative also it seemed as if they wanted to get u in and out, Dr Snyder makes sure you understand the importance of aftercare as well as using the tool properly he has given me for long term with after care programs, classes and meetings. His office and his curriculim is VERY organized!!! And VERY infomative!! I had an AWESOME experience with Dr Snyder!!! He is one of THE best!!! THANK YOU DR SNYDER FOR GIVING ME THE TOOL THE GET MY LIFE BACK!!!

Dr. Snyder is a very approachable doctor. I felt very comfortable with him being my surgeon. He has a way of giving the facts but keeping the patient comfortable at the same time. I do not know anyone who was not comfortable with him. He is well known for the wonderful surgeon that he is. I give him five stars. He has surgical competence and bedside manner. Strongly recommended.

I was very impressed when I first met Dr.Snyder at the informational seminar in 10/09. Dr. Snyder is very witty, funny and most of all, very informed and experienced in Bariatric Surgery. From that point forward I felt confidant that Dr.Snyder was there for me every step of the way. I felt completely comfortable trusting Dr.Snyder with my surgery. The office is a tad unorganized but the staff there is definitedly workable and will work hard to get you to your goal. He addressed the risks of surgery completely and I give him an excellent rating! Both his bedside manner and his surgical competence are supurb!

Dr. Snyder is an amazing surgeon and an amazing person. From the moment I met him, I knew that he was sincere, caring and dedicated. I trust him with my life! rn rnHe is highly educated, highly trained and even more so, he is so very down to earth. He was right there with me when my G Tube was placed and he explained why, etc. He is an excellent surgeon. He even called my mom, in Ohio, because she was worried about my having the RNY! rnrnDr. Snyder gave me my life back and I am so very grateful to him every day that I have had this chance! rnrnDr. Snyder is an excellent surgeon and I will have no problems telling any and all who will listen to go to through his office! AND!! The aftercare is amazing, too. I am HIGHLY satisfied!

I would be lying if I didn’t tell you that I was scared out of my mind to attend Dr Snyder’s seminar. I was afraid of being criticized for my weight and for letting things get out of hand. For me I think it was very hard to admit that I wasn’t able to lose weight on my own. I did, however, force myself into the car and to the seminar. I was pleasantly surprised at how many people were there, in the same situation as I was or sometimes worse.
When Dr Snyder introduced himself and began telling all present about his experience, the practice, the specific procedures, the requirements, the qualifications, everything we needed to know, that’s when you could tell that he truly has a heart for the overweight and obese and wants to help. Not once did he say anything that would make me think that he was judging any of us for our circumstances. He was compassionate, understanding and he looked all of us in the eyes. During the course of the seminar, he gave us the necessary tools to evaluate his practice or any other surgeon who we might see for these procedures. He emphasized his interest in safety and announced the safeguards he has in place to ensure a successful outcome.
Dr. Snyder has a great sense of humor and he has a way of making you feel very comfortable. When I went for my consultation Dr Snyder appeared to be the same person one on one as he was at this seminar. I really enjoyed meeting Dolly, his insurance specialist. She was attentive and spent as much time as I needed to understand what was required of me in order to get my provider to approve me for surgery. I never felt like she was rushing me at all, and yet she knew her stuff backwards and forwards. She was very encouraging. I can say that his front office staff seemed extremely busy so I didn’t really get a good read on them but I am sure that they are also friendly and helpful. Dr Snyder wants to know about anything that you aren’t happy with in his practice so if they weren’t up to his standards I’m sure he’d know about it and change it.
I think future patients should know that Dr Snyder has excellent credentials and patient reviews, he appears to really care about each patient, and he has a great personality. It’s a hard decision to research surgery but if losing weight is going to save or improve your life, I recommend that you not allow fear to hold you back and attend a seminar.
From everything that I have heard so far, Dr Snyder’s office puts a huge weight on aftercare. I haven’t had surgery yet but I have heard countless times that you are not only picking a surgeon or program for the actual surgery but you are picking a program for life. I think it’s very important that a support structure is in place for patients post-surgery and from what I can tell Dr Snyder and his years of experience have put together an excellent aftercare program, complete with support groups in numerous areas in the Denver metro area. There is a monthly calendar of events that is distributed.
Dr Snyder is very cautious to ensure that any surgery he performs is as safe as possible. This is why he asks that all patients get pulmonary and psychological evaluations prior to his “green-light” for surgery. In some patients, depending on their health situation he will ask for additional consultations such as cardiology evaluations. He wants to ensure that he is fully aware of your entire medical condition prior to surgery so he can put in measures to protect you during the procedure. He is extremely focused on the best outcome. His practice’s statistics are above the national average and has not only been rated as a Center of Excellence but Aetna has even rated him an Aexcel provider. Aexcel providers have demonstrated superior clinical performance as well as cost containment.
I would have to say I have a very high opinion of Dr Snyder thus far and I have heard the same from a number of other people seeking surgery. I cannot speak to his surgical expertise or bedside manner at this point except to go by his statistics in surgery. I personally think that surgical expertise is more important but that the best surgeons know how to talk to their patients and how to reassure them. I have seen glimpses of these skills in Dr Snyder at his seminar and consultation and I believe he excels in both areas.

Hi Dr. Snyder came highly recommended and everything went very well. I think the after care is very good and they definitley know what they are doing. Would recommend him to anyone seeking weightloss surgery.rnrn

He is a great man and doctor with an impeccable reputation which he takes very seriously. He had been nothing but great to me and really shows his warmth in the times you meet him. Office staff is very helpful and called me alot to make sure all the pre op stuff was in order, especially Dolly. Every pre op specialist I saw had nothing but good things to say about him and his program. My mother had RNY six years ago and she is amazed at how much involved my program is versus hers in Nevada. I would say this is the best place to go and would rate everything so far a nine on a ten scale. Now I am in the honeymoon stage but so far nothing negative to say.