Rodolfo Dy Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

.I have talked with Ivy from the hosp that Dr. Dy deals with and she has given me some guidance as to what testing I can start and have when I finally get to meet with the Dr. Will post more when I know!--- 06/21/2005 Met dr.dye - he was basic - he said that education was the most important thing and was straight up about waht he expects and what I need to do and expect.Will let you know as I go along.

Both my husband & I liked Dr. Dy from the very begining. He was "matter of fact" and told it like it was to us, he didn't sugar coat anything. He has always told us everything to expect.

His office staff has been friendly enough to us.

He emphasizes attending support group meetings through the hospital where the surgery was performed (Community Hospital in New Port Richey, FL) to be as successful as possible.

I had researched 3 surgeons before choosing Dr. Dy, I believe I chose the best surgeon for me.

Although I had some complications w/ my surgery (we all think that the complications happen to the "other" people and not us) Dr. Dy had left word that he was to be notified if anything was wrong w/ me. He was notified and a "scope" was performed and he checked out everything and fixed the problem. This scope experience was absolutely awful & I would dread having another one done since I wasn't asleep when it was started. I was quite upset and told Dr. Dy this on my first post op visit to him, he seemed unaware that "they" had started the procedure w/o me being asleep.

My first impression of Dr. Dy that he was very knowledgeable. I attened his seminar late last year with my fiance. Unfortunately we learned out insurance did't cover the surgery. Well after the new year I switched to a POS plan instead of a PPO plan and it is covered!! But it is up to care coordination. That is a plus :) Since then I went to another seminar at the end of March. It was the other surgeon that is with Dr. Dy, but I got all info I needed. I am so anxious and excited. I had my consult with Dr. Dy, I cant believe I got 4 questions wrong on the after seminar survey. Dr. Dy was very direct with risks of this surgery. That is good he is this way, I feel confident of his work. He could be a little more laid back, it would make his patients a little more comfortable. But overall I feel confident with my decision.

Dr. Dy, was very up front with me, I have Medicare and Medicaid due to a disability, He told me in order to get medicare/medicaid to pay for this surgery I would have to write a very long and detailed letter stating all the diets I've been on for the last 5 years, and how it has effected me, and to document it with Doctor's letter's. In order to go ahead with the surgery I had to agree to pay $4,000, up front which would be put in escrow until they paid. I went to his seminar, and it was very instructed, he pulled no punches. I was very impressed with him. His staff is always willing to talked with me when ever I called. In fact it's because of their williness to make sure I'm healthy enough to do this, that they insisted on further test. I'm bummed out aboutit. but I know its' for my own good. I feel I'm in good hands

My first impression of Dr. Dy was that he was extremly knowledgeable and caring. His office staff has been very friendly and helpful, even though I called them every day for 3 days straight, they never made me feel like I was bothering them. I'll know more as I go!

Me and my husband both agree, we both felt comfortable with him, he explained the risks in full detail, i'm not worried anymore, He is the one we are going with.

I met Dr. Dy in August 2003 at his informational seminar at the Community Hospital in Tarpon Springs. He was very thorough and went over his history as a surgeon and the complexity of the procedure.
His staff has been courteous and thorough with assisting me with geting prompt approval. My paper work was mailed to my insurance company the Friday before Labor Day weekend, Monday was the holiday, and they notified me the day after (Tuesday) that I had been approved!!! Well it has been a long journey up to this point...detailed below is the beginning of my journey....

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I switched surgeon's mid-stream, so here is a detailed description of my journey...
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I have been on this journey since May 2003, and I still have not met the doctor yet. The office requires you to undergo all the pre-op tests BEFORE you meet the doctor, so be prepared to be patient....

At any rate, my experience has been as follows.

MAY 2003
I contacted Dr. Haicken's (Dr. H)office to set an appointment, they indicated I had to give a $50 deposit, in order to make the appointment, I thought that was unusual/suspect, but I followed their instructions and came in and put down the required deposit. At that time an appointment was set and I was given a HUGE packet of information to read through and have completed prior to my next appointment. Excellent!! A deposit and Homework too!!! :-)

JUNE 2003
(I am not sure the exact date)
In the meantime, they have a support group meeting at Morton Plant Hospital in the Tuttle Auditorium, so I attended the meeting. Oh yeah, by the way, attending the meeting at least once is a MANDATORY part of your pre-op testing.

The meeting was very informative. There were people who were pre and post op, and I got an opportunity to ask a lot of questions and piggy back off of some questions that other people asked. The meeting is only offered 1-2X per month so I would advise anyone who is going for the first time to make the most of the experience by doing your homework in advance, so you are prepared to ask questions!!! AND Take NOTES!! I was ready with questions in hand so I took away a lot of valuable information.

I was very disappointed that Dr.H was not at the meeting, so his nurse played host. There was a backlog of people at the meeting who were awaiting a surgery date so the nurse fielded a lot of those questions. She indicted that Dr. Haicken would be on vacation and taking continuing education classes, so they would schedule people as soon as possible, but it was looking like mid-JULY before many would even get a date, even though all their pre-op testing had been completed...Bummer..

MY FIRST APPOINTMENT
I had my first appointment at Dr.H's office with the nurse practitioner. When I arrived they took my beginning weight and took a picture (I guess standard practice). I came armed with a lot of questions, especially since I had had the benefit of going to the Bypass Buddies meeting, and had the packet of information to read through.. Christine (the same nurse that ran the meeting) was very patient and answered all my questions that took awhile, since I had a lot of questions. Then I had to watch a ~40min video about the procedure. Then I was given a physical. Last, but not least I was given even more Homework! I was given a list of Pre-Op tests that I needed to have performed prior to meeting Dr.H.....Since I do not have a PCP, I was a little (not very) concerned, but the nurse assured me that I could go it alone without a PCP. #$%#&^%&Ugghhhuh!
They did provide me with a list of Dr's in the area that they referred their patients to, to make my job a little easier...that helped a lot.. I think te hardest part was determining which Dr. would perform each test..I stayed on the internet looking up information...

JUNE & JULY
OK..time to get organized! I purchased a white binder, and did a few other things so I could stay on top of every thing...I had to make appointments to get the following things done..
1. Pulmonologist - Sleep Study/CPAP (if needed WARNING - make the appointment to see this Dr. first--this will take a long time..so PLAN for it, I missed my first appointment and had to wait 3 weeks for another one!!! DO THIS FIRST IF IT IS A PRE-OP REQUIREMENT...This set me back at least one whole month...
2. Blood Work - Lab Corp
3. Radiology - Chest X-ray and Abdominal Ultrasound
4. Gastroenterologist - UGI Endoscopy
5. Cardiolgist - EKG, stress test, and pre-op clearance
6. Psychiatrist - pre-op evaluation and clearance

AUGUST...
Darn,... this is taking much longer than I thought..however all of my tests are FINALLY done yeah!!! Having this extra time has given me time to do more research and I have decided to change physicians since I prefer to have the procedure done laproscopically. So I choose Dr. Dy, since he performs the procedure laproscopically.

Around the same time I was investigating other Docs in the area I came across an interesting profile on this site that stated Dr. H had his privileges revoked at Morton Plant Hospital during June or July for 'too many re-admissions from complications', I thought it was vacation/continuing ed??.. This scared me dearly.. I am already squeamish about having the procedure, but that really freaked me out... I am not sure if this is factual information or not, but it kind of sealed the deal for me to move on and seriously look for another physiscian...

I am now more cautious than ever and have started interviewing a few Dr's in the area that perform the procedure laproscopically..I finally choose Dr. Dy after attending his information session. He was very open about the complications, and was very funny (in a doctor kinda way)...Anyways,this has added more time to the process, my plan was to have this done by the end of August, so much for my time schedule... But seriously, I want to make sure I am absolutely comfortable (as should you) with the individual I entrust my life to! I am undertaking this with my eyes WIDE OPEN and want to make sure that I HIRE the person I feel most comfortable with and who will take the time to speak with me openly and honestly BEFORE they cut me open!!....

OK, now the work begins again...I have to gather all the medical records I do not have, so I can present them to Dr. Dy, prior to meeting with him.

Sooo...I called Dr. Haiken's office to get a copy of all my records and they charged me for the privilege! A $1 per page! I had to get records from other physicians as well, some more lengthy than what I needed from their office, but NEVER, and I mean NEVER was I charged for information about ME, that they got for FREE from one of my other doctors.

TO avoid this, please REQUEST AND SIGN A RELEASE FOR YOUR MEDICAL RECORDS AT THE TIME OF YOUR APPOINTMENT AND REQUEST A COPY BE MAILED/FAXED TO YOU. If possible, DO NOT leave the office without a copy of YOUR RECORDS... You may be given a hard time, but INSIST that you have your records! WAIT IF YOU HAVE THE TIME. You can AVOID being charged $1.00 PER PAGE for copies!!! Not that it was that much, but I totally dislike unexpected expenses or getting a bill that I did not know I owed...(sorry, flash back from a previous experience...

At any rate, that has been my experience thus far, I will keep you posted on my progress.....

My first meeting with him is on 7/7/03

I felt very comfortable when I first met Dr. Dy. He came across as being very knowledgeable about the surgery and the risks associated with the surgery. He is very conservative and has a realistic view of obesity. I thought Dr. Dy was wvery thorough by the many questions he asked. He also encouraged me to think and ask questions. His staff seemed to be on top of things and are all very nice. The dr. and his staff make you feel very comfortable and they were all very friendly. Dr. Dy emphatically emphasizes aftercase because it's so beneficial to the patient. Dr. is very surgically competent. He received his surgical training from Carnie Wilson's doctor in California and has had additional training from various experts throughout the country. Dr. Dy's bedside manner is excellent and I would rate him a 9.5 (with 10 being the highest)on the surgeon referral scale.

Well...my impression of Dr. Dy hasn't changed since the first informational seminar I attended. He didn't and still doesn't blow smoke regarding the procedure. If you decide this is correct option for you do it, BUT...having the WLS will not give you the results you desire unless you follow a strict diet and EXERCISE. Each time I've had an appt with him he stressed these factors to successful weight loss.