Michael Jay Nusbaum Bariatric Surgeon MD, FACS, FASMBS

I did a great deal of investigating before choosing a surgeon. I ultimately found Dr. Nusbaum though some of my other doctors. It seems as though they all went to him for one reason or another. My Primary had his appendix out by Dr. Nusbaum, my GI doctor had him take his gallbladder out and my dentist had him do his bypass. My wife, who works at Clara Mass found out that he has operated on at least 6 nurses there that she could find. Each one raved about him more than the other. I liked the idea that Dr. Nusbaum was "the doctors doctor." That said a great deal to me. Couldn't get an appointment for 4 months. At the office visit, he was terriffic. He sat down next to me, explained the operation and all the risks and benefits. He answered all my questions fully and took all the time I needed. I did not feel rushed at all. The office staff was great and helped me out every step of the way. The next step is approval. Dr. Nusbaum is the best and I would rate him and his staff a 10 out of 10! NO Question!
***UPDATE: Approval granted! I'm all set to go.
***UPDATE: Surgery went great. Total time was only 80 minutes of operating. I had no pain in the recovery room, but felt soar the next morning up on 4700. Later that day, the pain just went away. I went home the next morning. Only two days in the hospital-Not bad.
***UPDATE: First post op visit and down 16 pounds. Dr. Nusbaum said that I'm just above average and I'm on my way. I do need to drink more water- haven't been to good with that one but I'm going to work on it.
***UPDATE: One month post op and I'm down 42 pounds. Dr. Nusbaum said that I'm well above average now. Had my first set of labs drawn- wow... any left over for me?
***UPDATE: Just had my four month visit with both the metabolic doc and Dr. Nusbaum. Doing great. Down 72 pounds. I can feel the extra energy now. Would do it over again in a heart beat. If you want this surgery- Dr. Nusbaum is worth the wait!

I met with Dr. Nussbaum with my husband, he was so great! I had already read that he was young and good looking, yes it's true. He draws pictures in a book and didn't rush us at all. His staff returned calls and were pleasant and helpful thus far. I helped the insurance process by nudging my insurance (Saint Barnabas Health Plan) and was approved in 48 hours.
I am awaiting some paperwork, other wise I am very pleased and don't doubt my choice.

I really liked Dr. Nusbaum's patience with me. He treated me like Linda, not patient number 205. He went over everything in detail and I really liked his talk about the procedure itself. It seems like he takes more time and extra steps to make sure there is no leakage. He does the dye test while you are still on the table, not the next day like most doctors. My sister is a nurse and she went with me. She was impressed also. I feel very confident in this doctor. This is the doctor number three that I have looked at and I am satisfied I picked the right one.
I am now on the other side and my opinion of Dr. Nusbaum just gets better. He really is great. As a surgeon and a person. He shows caring and has very good bedside manner. I tried to think of something negative, but I truly have nothing negative to say.

michael nusbaum is a wonderful people . he is a good friend and good doctor . michael j nusbaum is wonderful..

I had my consultation on October 27. I had previously read reports on here so I knew what to expect of Dr. Nusbaum. (As usual I still went to his office with attitude he would be critical) I was wrong he is young and down to earth and certainly not critical. I had my mind made up that I was getting the gastric banding. He explained ALL the risks and benefits of this surgery (like adjustments every 3 months). I rate him an 11 out of 10.

Now I have to go have all the tests completed so hopefully I will be having the surgery in 6 to 8 weeks.

Dr. Nusbaum is a wonderful doctor.

Dr. Michael Nusbaum.....kind of feel like I am eulogizing him while he is still alive!! LOL I first encountered a bad impression with a different group of doctors(Who came highly recommended I might add). After loads of pleading and useless seminars, plus wasted time and energy, it finally came to them black balling me with no longer accepting my insurance as well as demanding $15K up front for hospital expenses and to reserve the room! Lost all hope there till my wife decided to try a different avenue for me, she had heard of this Dr. Nusbaum and all patients she met while working at St. Barnabas including some of his nurse patients simply raved about him.(Perhaps his good looks??)

My first appointment with Dr. Nusbaum surprised me....heck, he is my age!! He told me all about the suregry, listened to my rants about the other group I left and assured me we would get things done right and with simple application process, insurance should have everything ok'ed shortly!!

This is where the snag occured, insurance is insurance, they lost my paperwork...I believe 4 times before finally finding everything in order and schedule moved up quickly!!

Date of surgery, all at hospital were great!!(For some reason I am too talkative when nervous so anesthesiologist felt a little injection before main start up procedure would calm me down...well knocked me out and woke 5 hours later a tad pained but happy all was over!

Follow up has been great and feeling wonderful...I believe Dr. Nusbaum is constantly perfecting his procedure and will be a frontrunner this type of surgery!! He is a very ambitious person and deserves any and all accolades he receives!!

Recommendation?? HIGHLY!!!

Dr. Nusbaum was great. My first impression was the he was young but he did put me at ease and explained everything about the surgery down to the last detail. He knows his stuff and I am very confident in his ability. In the beginning I loved everything even the office staff however, my opinion on the office staff has changed a little. I can understand they are very overwhelmed but I do feel they need to be a little more tactful in there dealings with the patients. Other than that I would recommend this surgeon to anyone.

I had my initial consult with Dr Nusbaum and was impressed by not only his thoroughness and professionalism, but his kindness.

The office staff was very nice and helpful. They have answered all my questions and addressed any concerns.

All aspects of the surgery were properly addressed including the risks and benefits.
Aftercare and being in a structured program were discussed.

Overall I would give him a high rating from
our initial meeting.

I finally decided which surgeon to have a consultation with. That seemed like the toughest decision, but my PCP was very helpful and we decided that he seemed to be the best choice. Now that I've decided to take this step I want to have it done and over with and start my new life. My conultation date is March 31, 2003. I'm hoping that I'll have a date for my surgery sometime after that. I've done so much research on this surgery and talked to so many people that I'm confident that this is the way to go. My main reason for having this surgery is that I don't want to die young. Yes there are other advantages, but that is just good side benefits. I don't want to die from being overweight. I've been fat all my life and I know that if I don't do this, I'll die. I want to see my nephews grow up and become adults. I want a life where I can do things. I love to be active. Although when I was younger I was active. I would play softball, tennis, swim, workout. Now I can't do any of that. I've never let my weight stop me from doing anything. Now that I'm older my body is betraying me. I'm only 41, but there are times that I feel 80. If you ever met me, I'm a very self confident person. I'm upbeat and very much out there. I'm no shrinking violet. I've never let my weight get in the way of that. I'm comfortable with who I am and what I look like, but I don't want to die. Yes, I want to look good and have clothes that fit me and not have to worry about chairs and where I sit. But the main reason is that I don't want to die. I'm a little leary about losing my identity. I've always been known as the pretty overweight woman. Guess I'll just be the pretty woman now. I'll keep you posted on how I make out with Dr. Nusbaum. I'm so excited I can't wait for March 31st. What's even better is that my older brother is going to be going thru the surgery too. His first consult is on March 7, 2003. So we'll both be going thru this together. That's a comfort. He does have a different doctor and a different hospital. It'll be interesting to see how we compare. I'll be in touch with you to let you know how it goes. Till then!
Mary Kay


April 18, 2003
I had my consult with Dr. Nusbaum. I liked him. He looks so young. He made me feel at ease right away. He was consice in the way he explained the surgery and answered all my questions before I had a chance to ask them. I felt right away that I made the right choice. I had to have a few things for my insurance but I'm hoping to have a date soon. Today I had my psychiatric evaluation. The doctor I went to said that he would overwhelmingly approve me for surgery. Hmmm, I'm not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing. I also had to have a thyroid test done, since my last one was 2 years ago and a letter from my PCP stating what diet programs I've been on under his care. Once that is all done, I'll just have to wait for a decision. I'll keep you posted.

Mary Kay