Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center Hospital

My first impression of Dr. Schweitzer was one of reassurance. He was warm, friendly, and personable. The morning of my initial consultation was hectic. I was originally scheduled for a January date but traded with my friend. One of the receptionist gave me a hard time about the switch but Andrea managed to put all of the details together for me. The doctor was late seeing me but made his sincere appologies saying that he was longer in surgery than expected. Though this was my first meeting with Dr Schweitzer, I am familiar with his work because he performed the surgery on my youngest daughter and ex-husband. Both have loss in excess of a hundred pounds since January. Dr. Schweitzer explained that he was backlogged with cases and wouldn't rush any of them. He said that my surgery would most probably take place in the Fall. He advised me that most African-American patients do not fare as well with the lap-band surgery and that he wouldn't reccomend that particular procedure for me. Having researched all of the methods at my disposal, I was most interested in the RNY procedure done laproscopically. The doctor said he would only cut me if there were complications. We discussed the risks associated with the surgery and I assured him that I understood fully. I also inquired of him as to the age of his oldest patient because I want to encourage my mother to have the surgery as well.
There is a structured after care program. I understand that he wants to know the whereabouts of all of his patients for perpetuity. I have no dislikes with Dr. Schweitzer. I found him to be honest, considerate, and efficient, traits important to me as a patient. I will rate him again after my surgery on October 28th.

1] Nice, professional, cautionous, I think that he is caring, supportive and continues to care, even if I have switched Doctors, due to distance, as I have moved, he still keeps in touch with email.
2] Office staff nice, slow, but then again, it is a very being office, so no wonder.
3]That he is caring and what;s to make sure that you know everything before having the surgery, he has watch movies, meet with the dietian and makes sure you know everything, complications, lifestyle changes, eating habits, etc. all before the surgery. Also most Drs. make you come in several times before the surery, due to the distance from him, he and his staff worked with me to make me come for only one visit before the surery and any added blood test was done the morning I arrived at the hospital, he left my primary care phy. do the routine blood tests and xrays himself and faxed the results to him. He cared about my convience which is very unusal for a dr. I know as I am an RN. I would rate him a 25 on a scale of 0-10

My first impression Of Dr. Schweitzer was that he looks young.. The visit went really fast for the time it took to get the initial appointment.His Office Staff is Top Notch and I wouldnt have asked for a better group of people..I have nothing negative to say about the doctor or his staff. You must alway remember they are human beings and have more then there share of duties to take care of.Be patient you will have your turn..My surgery date is set for Oct.21st 2002..I will give you more information once I have surgery..

I met Dr. Schweitzer on July 31, 2002. I was fortunate to slip into a cancelled appt. slot, because my original appt. date isnt until Dec. Dr. Schweitzer is a very popular guy, particularly now that he is doing the lap-band. I believe he is the only surgeon in Md. doing it at this time.

During my appt., I watched a very informative video and then met with Dr. Schweitzer. He is young and seemed very easy going, but he certainly has the credentials and reputation behind him. My understanding is that he developed the lap-rny during his residency. I have elected to have the lap-band and though he has only been doing this procedure for a short time, I have the utmost confidence in his capabilities.

About the office staff, they are very busy and can be a bit stressed out, but I believe the secret to success is to deal with Andrea. She knows what she is doing and if you are nice and persistent, but not too pushy, she will do what she can to help you get an appt.

I am currently waiting on insurance approval. I have been told by Andrea that my letter has been submitted and I will be following up regularly.

One of the most important steps in this process is to be proactive. These people are very busy and if you dont stay on top of things, I think you will be waiting a long time for results.

august 8 2002...I called the office to make sure everything was on course for surgery on monday august 12 2002. the doctor cancelled my surgery so he could take a vacation. this is the second time he has cancelled my surgery so he could work less. the main problem with him is he works for a hospital and does not run his own office he gets his paycheck if he does or does not please his patients. i hope anyone looking into him will keep looking. dont waste your time with him.

I met Dr. Schweitzer in his office in February 2002. He is very young (about 35ish) and very matter-of-fact. I had done so much research that I really didn't need much time with him to ask questions, so after a quick physical exam, "we" decided that I needed open RNY. (I had had multiple open and lap surgeries and my BMI was 62, so a lap procedure was impossible.)I left the office and decided to start on the things I would have to do after surgery, and began to drink my water (64 to 80 ounced daily), take vitamins, etc. By the end of March, I was approved and had all my pre-op stuff either done or scheduled if it couldn't be done ahead. The next time I saw Dr. Schweitzer was in the pre-op area the morning of surgery. He was much more personable that morning. In fact, every time I see him, he is more personable. I think he waits to see if you actuallly have surgery before he "invests" himself too much. I think he is an excellent surgeon, and I had lots of complications (adhesions, liver problems, bleeding, seromas, trouble with morphine, etc.) The one thing that is bad about the entire situation is the staff. The nutritionist is very young and inexperienced with WLS patients. You must have a nutritionist, and a visit prior to surgery with her/him. There is a wonderful one that is affiliated with the Saint Agnes program and has an office in Columbia, MD (Arlene Swatko). I believe that Sinai (which is where Dr. S is)will eventually have all the bells and whistles for the program, but first they had to have proof that this surgical program would bring in the bucks, I guess. I have just heard that they are adding a nurse-practitioner to the staff, and so far they have gone through four or five secretaries and assistants. Hopefully, things will get better staff-wise, but Dr. S and his surgical team are wonderful.

When you call in for an appointment, you are sent a packet of paperwork that includes a handout about the types of surgery provided and some questions and answers to them. When you go in the first time, you sit in a room and watch a video covering the same type of things. Then you have the appointment with Dr. S., and if you are a candidate for the procedures, you set up nutrition and psychiatric screenings. I also had a mammogram, a bone density and a chest x-ray done because I needed them anyway. After the screenings, your packet is sent to your insurance carrier. After approval, you schedule a history and physical with your physician, and a type and screen at the hospital for 48 to 72 hours prior to your surgery date and time. After that, you are ready to have this surgery and start your new life!!!

7\14\02. i am offically 6 months out today. my comments about the doctor stands. he is the best. i have had some difficulties eating and keeping food down. this poor man has had to deal with me for the entire time. god bless his heart. i am just shy of 100 pounds lost and feeling better that way. dr. schweitzer has been there to answer my emails, to see me in his office(only to hear me say no to his suggestions), and just plain putting up with me. he is a doctor who is in this for the long haul. for that i am grateful. at times he can be a bit short(if you are sensative like me, don't take it personally) but always professional. he has and is trying to save my life and hasn't kicked me to the curb. give him a chance. my first impression, like everyone else's. wow, he is young. but how knowledgable. he is there for you. no matter how crazy you drive him. and i got to tell everyone, i have driven him nuts. he is confident(i admire), compotent, and talented. he is there for his patients. if you do something right, he is there to praise you. if you do something wrong, he will let you know that to. i am a very nervous, anxious person. he has taken his time with me and for that i will be ever so grateful. if you are considering this surgery, take the time to meet with him. he will win you over.

I HAVE SWITCHED SURGEONS TO HAVE IT DONE LAPAROSCOPICALLY AND I AM VERY CONFIDENT IN MY DECISION TO HAVE DR. SCHWEITZER PERFORM IT. HE SEEMS TO BE A VERY KNOWLEDGABLE AND ENTHUSIASTIC SURGEON. WHEN I FIRST CONSIDERED SWITCHING SURGEONS, WE COMMUNICATED VIA E-MAIL. AND TO MY SURPRISE, HE ALWAYS RESPONDED VERY QUICKLY. THAT SAYS ALOT TO ME. HE TAKES THE TIME TO CARE AND THAT HE IS ALSO A VERY GOOD BUSINESSMAN. SOMETIMES TAKING THAT EXTRA STEP IN CUSTOMER SERVICE CAN MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD!HIS OFFICE ASSISTANT GENNY IS ALSO VERY RESPONSIVE AND KIND. I HAVE FOUND THE RIGHT SURGEON AND OFFICE FOR ME AND MY SURGERY DATE IS SEPTEMBER 13, 2001! THE EXACT DAY AS MY PREVIOUS DATE WITH MY FORMER SURGEON! WHAT A COINCIDENCE!

I felt Dr. Schweitzer to be up front, relaxed, and professional. The initial process of explaination was a little cold, but he warmed up as we spoke. He was patient as I questioned him about the operation. His staff was somewhat cold and clinical as I inquired as to why it was taking so long to get asurgical date. Finally after their mistake was resolved, they seemed to warm up. Dr. Schweitzer was very detailed about the risks envolved, but very "matter of fact", as though he had done this a thousand times before. I did get a sense of confidence in his ability to bring me through this. I suppose I would rate him as one of the best and I am very familiar with the hosp. With 3 weeks to go, I am not extremely anxious.

6/4: Dr. Schweitzer came to the support group meeting on the 28th. It was a great meeting. He asked questions that I didn't even know I needed to know. He was informative and compassionate. I see him again on the 19th for my 6 month checkup. I wanted 100 pound weight loss and it's not going to happen yet, but he made me feel okay about that. I was all worried about not losing fast enough and my window of opportunity would be gone. After talking with him, I lost that tenseness and lost some more. He's a good man and an excellent surgeon. Shame he doesn't do plastic surgery too.

1/29: Had problems not related to surgery but was worried that meds I was taking would hurt me. Also weight loss had stopped at 7 weeks out. I emailed Dr. S. and he was in contact with me throughout this problem. I can't thank him enough. I would recommend this man to anyone who was thinking about WLS.

1/3: One of the best things I like about this doctor is that he answers emails. I wrote him when I was not losing and he responded with suggestions. That is so cool. I emailed him with a one month update and he responded. His office staff still stinks but as I am past that part I am okay. But I feel sorry for those starting this journey as they may be put off with having to do all the work themselves.

12/20: I find that each time I speak with this doctor I like him more and more. I am glad that I chose him as he did a great job.