Englewood Hospital and Medical Center (COE) Hospital

He is a excellent doctor. I went to his seminar and he was very clear and realistic about this type of surgery. I have total confidency with him. He and Dr. Stephanie are world class doctors.

I had to stay after a surgeon, a resident, and then the nursing staff to get my foley dc'd that first night. I did get out of bed several times the first night to pee. They NEVER turned me. I had to ask for the incentive spirometry to keep my lungs open. They NEVER listened to my lungs, even though I have a history of asthma. I snuck my inhalers in and was able to use the second day to keep my airways clear. The night shift was the worst, I never slept, I had to un-hook myself from NGT and suction, 2 IV pumps, and my anti-embolism boots everytime I wanted to walk to the bathroom to pee.

When i met Dr. Ibrahim at the info seminar i was pretty impressed. He seemed very friendly and personable. Dr Ibrahim was very informed about the surgery and answered everyones questions honestly, wether good or bad.
I had my private consult on 2/24. I met with the female doctor in his practice. i wont attempt to spell her name of the top of my head. She was very nice and answered all of my questions. i was weighed and asked some questions. The doctor then looked at my stomach and bellybutton and said i was a candidate for surgery.
The doctor then explained that there is a $7200 doctors fee. For the gastric bypass the doctor doesnt participate in any health insurance. so he is considered "out of network". each insurance company will have differnt stipulations and it all depends on your plan. so everything will be covered 100% other than that. so right now it looks like i may have to pay anywhere from $3500 to $5000 out of pocket.
I got my surgery date from devorah, his nurse. which by the way, she is an angel. so nice, so patient. you can call her ten times a day and she will answer every questions everytime you call. she calls back very quickly too. maryland, the insurance specialist is very sweet. she'll keep it real with you, but that is totally a good thing. honestly, everyone i came across in the office was great. i really dont ANY negative things to say at this point and hopefully i wont. you can just really tell that everyone really cares. just sitting in the waiting room you would see people come in that have had the surgery. all the nurses would know their names, have a genuine look on their faces when they said how great they looked. it was a very nice experience.
i have my surgery date set for April 10th at englewood hospital. i am still waiting for approval from Oxford. maryland said they should know by late march. so that's it for now. in the mean time i have set up all my appointments for all the tests you have to get done before hand. i will keep everyone posted.

overall i am not completly disappointed with this hospital, however i have been hear in this hospital for six months and i feel they could have taken better care of me in general.

There are signs in the lobby, "We want to exceed your expectations", and they do, at every turn. They are undergoing a lot of construction right now so the parking situation is not great, but that would be my only real complaint. I would highly recommend EH!

My first impression of Dr. I was during the information session. He was knowledgable, willing to answer all questions, thorough, and gave me complete confidence in him. I called around 8 different offices in the NY metro area before selecting a surgeon, and the introduction I received to Dr. I's office was through Devorah, the nurse coordinator. I cannot praise her enough. She took time with me, provided me with as much information as I wanted, and has been a continuing source of reassurance and encouragement. Englewood hospital was excellent. I was completely taken care of, the nursing staff was attentive, pleasant and completely professional. The overall experience was fantastic, really. Scale of 1-10? 10 all the way!

Dr. Ibrahim was low keyed and had a pleasant demeanor. He office was very busy and I had to wait over an hour before I even got in to see his nurse. Devorah, RN is wonderful and case manages the Bariatric patients for this busy Surgical Practice.
Insurance specialist, Marilyn, also very pleasant.
Found out that MD is a covered doctor for
VASCULAR surgery only. Bergen Bariatrics has its own tax ID #, which is how they bill for the Surgical Fee. Cigna PPO does not even recognize Bariatrics as a specialty; thereby he is considered "out of network" for this procedure. (they are VERY sneaky those insurance companies--BEWARE).
Strong before care and after care program.
It is an absolute necessity for success.
Detailed risks, adverse effects, and percentages of those adverse effects were presented by his Junior partner in an earlier group presentation. This included his RN, Devorah, and his Insurance Spec.
MD saw me briefly (5 minutes) and examined my abdomen. For me, I am more interested in surgical competance. Skill, precision, nice clean surgery, minimal time under anesthesia. Nurses are the best in bedside manner anyway -- AND they keep the doctors organized.

Dr. Ibrahim was caring and compassionate. He answered all of my questions. since my surgery is scheduled i cannot offer more @ this time, but will keep posting updates.

In my own personal individual opinion, my surgeon Doctor Ibrahim and all his office staff seemed to be very in 'sync' and positive professional indiviuals.
It was a real pleasure dealing with each and every one of them, I told all my friends that I was glad I had chosen him to be my surgeon.
I was really amazed, that even when I went to the Englewood Hospital to have the pre-op tests done,etc., everybody was in 'sync', and all papers were there before me and a couple tests which were ordered later by the doctor, they went ahead and sent me upstairs to have done and called the nurse at the doctors office to write them and fax them over, instead of all the delays, etc.
I cant tell you how great it was dealing with people who were pleasant and so together, teamwork was definately a plus for all people I dealt with.
How many times have we all been to doctors and the staff didn't know what the other staff or even what the doctor was doing? Or the paperwork held us up, and testing took forever? These people were amazing, so on the ball!
The only thing I can say that I wasn't too pleased about was when I went for my last pre-op office visit to sign the consent forms, etc. I didn't actually see my surgeon, I saw his nurse and an associate doctor in the office, whom I hadn't seen before. He was helpful and asked if I was ready or nervous and he answered all questions that I had at that time, but, I would have preferred to see my surgeon. Also, I had assumed that the first post-op check-up appointment would have been like a week after surgery it wasn't until 17 days after I got out of the hospital. I would have been happier to have gone in sooner.
All-in-all, I really doubt I could have had a more pleasant experience with any other doctor or hospital. Thank God Almighty.

I had heard so many wonderful things about him, and when I finally met with him I loved him and put 100% trust in him and his experience. I know now first hand what a wonderful Dr. he is. everyone in his office was very helpful and friendly. I do not have any complaints about Dr. I or his office. (Keep in mind I am 3 Years 4 mos post op) his office staff has changed but I am sure they are all very nice. Dr. I is in demand, he is extremely busy, so be prepared to wait for a visit, but take the waiting time to research all about the surgery especially the mental part of it, and believe me, he is worth the wait. If all goes well with the surgery, you will probably only have to see him 1 or 2 times post op, and then your PCP can do your followup blood work and checkups. I am not sure what type of aftercare program Dr. "I" has now, when I had my surgery 4/20/99, he was readily available, but I basically chose to go to my own PCP. Dr. "I" explained the risks of the surgery as in any surgery, but he was very confident and that helped me alot. I think that Dr. "I" is the greatest, he saved my life, on a scale of 1-10 I give him a 12!!. Of course in a perfect world you want the most competent Dr. with a great beside manner, personnaly I'll take Surgical competence over bedside manner, any day, and in my perfect world with Dr. "I" you will get both.