Thomas Lavin Bariatric Surgeon MD, FACS, FASMBS

Finally I met Dr. Lavin on 6-16-05. He was not what I expected. He was very kind, knowledgable, confident, positive, but I expected him to be really outgoing, from what others have said. I was impressed, and have heard his bed side manner is even better. My oldest daughter was w/ me...and she said he was "HOT"...I have to agree. Maybe he was so quiet due to our goofy smiles at him... His staff is awesome, especially my Patient Advocate, Rachel,and his Nurse Practioner, Chris. They handle everything w/ professionalism, courtesy, care, concern, and truly, I feel love. They will not mislead you, or disappoint you. The office and building is designed for obese people(bigger elevators, bathrooms, close parking, large chairs, sufficient scales, large hallways, and smiling faces) From the beginning you are told of the risks, the pluses, and the consequences to almost any action. They make sure you are fit, both physically, mentally, and emotionally. They use hospitals that are equipped to deal w/ obese patients and are sensitive to our needs.

He has a very good bedside manner. He explains everything, and is very patient. He performed my surgery very well. I had some nausea after surgery upon discharge and was followed closely by phone, and we were able to come up with altenatives that prevented ED readmit. His nurse practioner "Cris" is awesome,nice and informative. His office staff can always give you some information, are pleasant on the phone. The staff promotes aftercare, and keeps up with it, and will see you more often if medically necessary. There aftercare program is structured. The risks are explained fully in a oneon one scheduled office visit. I was very educated by the time I had surgery, moreso than the actual hospital staff.I don't have anything negative to say about Dr. Lavin, his associates on-call or his office staff.

Dr. Lavin is a very gifted surgeon with a superb bedside manner. He is very approachable and thorough. I have friends/family that are also patients of his and feel the same way. I would recommend him 100%

From my first visit, Dr. Lavin was very attentive. I have never had a problem contacting someone in the office when I was having problems. I only grew to respect him more as he worked with me through my band complications and eventual decision to convert to RNY. The office staff is friendly and greets almost every patient by name. I think some people get frustrated because they don't think they see their surgeon enough, but I think nurse practitioners are a great resource and once I don't need to see the surgeon as much, I don't want to waste his time (but he usually pops in and says hi anyway). He was very straight forward about the risks and expectations of the surgery. His surgical competence and bedside manner are superb.

First impression: Dr. Lavin was upbeat and very informative. Never made me feel bad for allowing myself for getting so big. He has a compassion for his work that is not seen in many doctors.

My impression has not changed, just I do not get to see Dr. Lavin very much, I do see his nurse practioner, Chris who is very good. I just love the way they praise your efforts.

Dr. Lavin and staff makes aftercare a number one priority. He says that without it you will not do as well as you should.

Dr. Lavin explains everything post-op and will answer any questions and concerns that you may have.

Both surgical competence and beside manner are great. Dr. Lavin was one of the first doctors in the states to offere Lap Band and he does biatric surgery everyday of the week so he has a lot of experience.

Dr Lavin is great.
He was very understanding and really wants to help his patients. His office staff is very friendly and understanding and some of them have had the surgery too.
I would recomond Dr. Lavin to anyone who was thinking about having the bypass or the lap band.

I had a very good first impression of my surgeon. He allowed as much time as I needed to ask questions. He has a very professional manner. I have seen him now for 2 fillings. Each time I see him, he is very caring and ready to help me.
He has a nice staff. They are willing to answer all my questions at any time. It is obvious that they are very busy.
If you plan to use Dr. Lavin, be assured they will prepare you adequently for your surgery. There were no surprises for me.
He really emphasizes exercise, support groups and how you eat.
I was told about all the risks that were involved with this surgery in a positive way.
I would rate him from 1 to 10 as a 10!
The only unpleasant experience for me was my post op visit (1month). The Dr.'s assistant saw me. It was an unpleasant experience. I now ask for Dr. Lavin and I always get to see him.

My first impression of Dr Lavin was that he was the most successful obesity surgeon in the region. After meeting with him and his staff, I found a comprehensive program with an outstanding support group. Dr Lavin and I discused the different options of surgery and the history of all of my other surgerys. We concluded that the Laproscopic RNY Gastric Bypass was the best procedure for me. The office appointments are sometimes long and waiting to see Dr Lavin can be time consuming as he sees patients in between performing surgery's. The office on St Charles is usually crowded and conversations with helpful tips are frequently offered among guests in the waiting room. I wanted someone who wasn't going to rush me and actually spend time explaining all the scenarios. Dr Lavin takes the time to ensure your understanding of the procedure, potential risks, course of action and follow-up. Dr Lavin emphasizes exercise, protein supplement meals, vitamin/nutrients post op. They have become my mainstay. I would rate him overall Superior. I would also rate Touro Infirmary as Superior. His surgical competency and bedside manner are AWESOME. His staff is available to me 24 hours a day/7 days a week. As for the process, I started this road in July thinking that getting approval from my insurance would be a breeze since I knew they covered the surgery. This did not happen. Dr Lavin wants you in your best optimum health and puts you on vitamin supplements immediately and on a diet. I lost 8 lbs preop. Going through the process was somewhat frustrating since he requires a sleep study, psychological evaluation, history and endorsement from your general physician. It roughly takes about 4 months to go through this process. And everyone charges you for these documents. His staff will not schedule you for surgery until the insurance company authorizes the surgery. So not having a surgery date to look forward to was frustrating. Finally, it all came together and my surgery was on Nov 15th. Since that date I have lost 39 lbs and feel great. I am following up with monthly support group meetings and tri-monthly with Dr Lavin. I had no complications with the surgery.

I was very impressed with Dr. Lavin from the first time I met him at the seminar. He was so real. He talked about how he understood the struggle with weight and even shared some personal things about himself. He was not in a hurry and answered each and every question honestly and thoroughly. At my consultation, I was very happy with his office staff and the care I was given. Dr. Lavin treated me very respectfully and had a great bedside manner. He let me decide which WLS I wanted. Although he does many types, he didn't try to influence my decision at all. He didn't rush me or hurry me out. My only complaint was that I was there for several hours and most of that time was spent waiting in the waiting area. Even though I've looked at other doctors because I am self-pay I keep coming back to Dr. Lavin because of his reputation and my comfort level with him and his staff.

After attending a few seminars in my area, I chose Dr. Lavin as my attending surgeon. He was the best choice for me. He was very friendly, understanding and possessed that self confidence which, I need in a surgeon. Being in the healthcare profession, I shopped very carefully for my surgeon. I chose to go out-of-network with Dr. Lavin which, meant that I had to accept reduced benefits. However, I have no regrets thus far. The office staff is extremely busy but most friendly and helpful. If I had to pick a least favorite quality, I would have to say that waiting for to see him in the office is often time consuming and can be inconvenient for my tight schedule. Future patients should know that he as well as his staff are always willing to go the extra mile to meet the patients needs/requests. He certainly is very talented and knowledgeable at what he does. The entire office is very upfront with the course of post-op care and invite any questions/concerns. The aftercare program is structured consisting of support groups and informational seminars. Dr. Lavin was very open about discussing the risks of the procedures he performs. He also took the time to address possible prognosis as well as additional procedures warranted to handle various complications, which could arise. He definitely gets a 10/10 in my book. While I certainly think that there needs to be a balance between competence and bedside manner, I think surgical competence is more important to me! In fact, I did not see Dr. Lavin while I was an inpatient (post-op). I saw one of his associates who, was equally as knowledgeable and most compassionate and understanding. The team is great!!!