Raymond Drew Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

I attended the informational meeting run by
Judy Schwartz, the nurse for Dr. Drew and
Dr. Schwartz. Very professional, very
honest. I was approved for RNY with her
help. Unfortunately, however, they cannot
even schedule an appointment with me for at
least six months, and the surgery would be
about four months after that. Frankly, I
cannot wait that long. So I have an
appointment with Dr. Ikramuddin in a
month. He is new to the area, and he can
probably operate as soon as two months after
the initial consultation. I feel guilty about
having Nurse Schwartz get me approved and
then going to another surgeon, but so it
goes. Dr. Ikramuddin is a member of the
ASBS, there are no complaints against
him, and he works with Dr. Buchwald.

I thought Dr Drew to be very patient and informative when it came to my questions. I also found the nurses at his office patient and willing to answer the smallest of questions. When you call and have to leave a message they return your call in a timely matter. The only thing I was uncomfortalbe about was at the end of our meeting he shook my hand and said see ya on 1/17/02. I thought I would have at least another meeting with him before hand. I only had one meeting with him so from what I gathered frome that is a feeling of trust. I did however get a chance to speak with two of his patients in the waiting room and they seemed to but a lot of fears at ease. I am concered with how things will be handled at the hospital before and after.

My impression of Dr. Drew is that he genuinely cares about his patients and the same goes for his staff. His aftercare program has a bit to be desired as I don't feel as if there is one. Dr. Drew adressed all of the risks of surgery and they were all acceptable to me. I would definitely recommend Dr. Drew to anyone considering the surgery. I think they could have done a better job on the incision as it did leave a considerable scar but that is probably normal.

He was very patient and curitous with my questions. He definately knows what he is doing and how the surgery is completed.


He did go on to explain all the side effects and no guarntee spill, but overall I got the feeling he was a nice man and was just tired and rushed.

I am confident of his ablities and am looking forward to surgery. I know he will be great.

I meet the doctor today for the first time. The office staff is overworked and with this aspect of their vascular surgery practice growing at the rate it is they clearly need to hire more people to handle the load. We have a patient-run group which was started by one of Dr Drew's post-ops when she felt a need for more support. This group is open to everyone who has had or is interested in having WLS regardless of which operation, doctor, or hospital they had. I'll let you know more tomorrow after my appointment.

Okay, it's not tomorrow, it's thirteen months after my actual surgery which occurred on August 15, 2000. I am a 1%er who had numerous complications... this man did everything in his power, called upon a team of experts and saved my life eight times during the tumultuous weeks that followed his initial life saving efforts of doing my WLS. His compassion, concern and dedication are unparalled and he IS the man who has changed my life forever.

I got to know this man very well during my almost two months in the hospital and regular visits pot-operatively. Of course, I was in that coma for about a month, but I heard from family and friends about how my cool and collected surgeon could be found at all hours of the day/night pouring over my charts trying to determine what had gone wrong with me. I am, and will remain, his 'problem child'.

The office staff is overworked but very supportive and positive. Our local group OSSGMN just had their annual Gala and my doctor, his partner and four staff members attended in order to see the 'fruits of their labor' having fun and living 'normal' happy healthy lives.

I really can't think of a thing that I disliked about Dr Drew, he was very thorough in his medical information when he discussed the whys and wherefores of what I was going to have done. Afterwards when everything went downhill this man devoted untold hours to keeping my ass alive and although I now have problems stemming from the stroke, I am able to wake up every day, get out of bed without the pain of dragging 140# extra along with me and wear clothes that make the boys in the steelyard cry!

Know this, he may seem very reserved and businesslike, but he is a compassionate and caring man who does this to save and improve our lives. I cannot recommend him enough.

My mileage varied because of the amount of medical follow-up I require, but he and his partner fully support our patient run group and we meet in their building twice a month.

He addressed all the potential risks but I wasn't going to dwell on them... no one could have predicted what would happen to me but I do not regret having had my WLS, although I'd have preferred not to develop a leak or have a heart attack and stroke. Oh well... you should see me now!

I give the man a 10.

Yes... excellent on both counts although it took him a while to get used to my offhand, flippant, and irreverent sense of humor. Now he enjoys it after a year of putting up with my witty but sarcastic ways.

I did a lot of research to choose a good doctor. I knew I wanted my surgery at Abbott Northwestern Hospital and I had heard good things about Dr. Drew. Once I met with him, he totally put me at ease. Not only did I feel he really understood me, but I felt like he actually cared about me and how this would effect my future. His staff is wonderful and very helpful. I had lots of questions and they were all very patient in answering everything. I believe Dr. Drew was very straight forward about the risks and I appreciated that. I would rather know what I am getting into before surgery than to be surprised afterwards. I would highly recommend that you consider him. The only negative thing is that my surgery date was pushed out pretty far because of the "almost strike" at the hospital.

He was a very competent and confident man believing in what he is doing to help people in my situation.
It did not. He was wonderful before during and after surgery.
Helpful and encouraging
He is busy. Although he is very busy, he does take the time to explain the surgery and complications people may expect.
He is a gifted surgeon who believes in what he does. I was at the limit for having the surgery lap and he took two extra hours to perform my surgery lap. I am truly thankful.
They, the office staff, encourage follow-up with groups they lead and they continually encourage people to keep up on the aftercare and how important it is during and after weight loss.
He explained the risks of surgery simplely, fully without trying to scare people.
10 on a scale of 1 to 10
surgical competence......although he is pleasant and honest so bedside manner is not a problem, he is not a hold your hand pooh,pooh sort of doctor. He believes in what he does, understands the risks and complications and is very competent which reduces peoples fear.

I just had an informatin session where I met with Judy Schwartz. The meeting lasted about 2 1/2 hours and was pretty thorough. I was really tired at the meeting because I worked an overnight prior to the class and normally would be sleeping then but it was worth it.

The surgeons office staff were very polite and happy to help me out. I was impressed with how they try to work with people and around their issues.

A very gentle and kind man. The nurses had put my Teds on wrong, which was causing them to be like a tournequet. He was not happy, rolled them down and put them on right. I work in an emergency room of a major hospital and I can tell you first hand to find surgeons who are humble, who care beyond the surgery table is rare. He came highly recommended by other doctors, which tells me a lot. I wanted someone I could trust when I was out and not seeing/hearing what was going on as well as kind and respectful to me. I didn't want to settle just for a good surgeon, I wanted the best.

I think they need to find a person to manage just their paperwork in addition to the present staff. I tend to be a perfectionist and working in the health care field my expectations are pretty high. The staff is great - nurses Judy and Marilyn.

My rating is high. I know some other doctors cater more and seem to provide more, but overall he was the best for me. As far as what is better, surgical competence, bedside manner, or both - I'd say I'm paying for it and I should be able to have it all and Dr. Drew fit that bill.

Again my only negative thing was issues with lost paper work,which didn't delay my surgery in anyway, it was my own frustration. I know how hard it can be in an emergency room, but if it can be done there it sure should be able to be done in a doctors office. So even when I wasn't happy, very unhappy they still kept working with me and working with me to work it out.

Dr. Drew was a great doctor, he made me feel really safe and explained everything in lots of detail. He came and talked to me right before surgery to make sure I wasn't feeling nervous. And took the time to stop in my room the next day! He is a great doc and I am glad that I had him!