Magee Womens Hospital of UPMC Hospital

My first impression was- she's young- to young to be a good surgeon- WRONG!, also what does this pretty little chic no about what it's like to live in an obese body? I figured she would be condiscending. That was the furtherest from the case.
Dr. Hamad is wonderful, she is extemely knowledgable, caring, and empathetic. I would trust her with my life many times over.
I will need my gallbladder out eventually and she will be the one to do it.
Her staff is very efficient and always attentive.
Future pts. need to know- she makes a stipulation that once the process is started that you can't gain any weight. That was
a hard pill to swallow, but it truly is for your own good. Surgery is very hard on an obese person both from the surgeons standpoint and from the pts.

What can I say my opinion is...Dr. Hamad and her staff are wonderful beyond words. I was welcomed, made to feel at ease and treated with the utmost respect. This office goes above and beyond what any other Doctor and office normally does. They are there for you in EVERY way and i feel so secure in their hands. I would not want to be anywhere else considering the risks involved!! I am a member of a local group and have heard a lot of negative things about a few doctors, you will not about Dr. Hamad or her staff!!! I will post more after surgery...

She was very timely. I was impressed that we did not have to wait there for hours on end. The nurse staff and office staff seem very nice and helpful. No one judged us for our weight, or made snide looks or remarks. The waiting room had chairs big enough for us to sit in as well.

My first impressions was exactly as I expected. She was warm and very informative. She gave me the impression that she knew the ins and outs of bariatric surgery. She's firm, but polite. She has a strict policy of don't gain between your initial consult and your pre-op or she will cancel your surgery. I went and bought me a scale just to make sure I don't do that (and stocked up on Slim-fast) because I hear she's a stickler. Although I don't feel all is lost as if I do gain weight, my surgery is approved through my insurance company, I'll just have to find a doc who would do it regardless. On a scale of 1 to 10 I'd rate her a 10 (for good). I feel they have an excellent aftercare program and support group (they even have a plastic surgeon come out and talk in the support groups). I believe her office staff is second to none. I've never had a problem with them calling me back about anything. They give me the impression that no question is too dumb and they make sure you know what you're going through and neither did the Surgeon nor her staff sugar-coat anything and told it like it is. I give them a thumbs up.

Terri

Dr. Hamad was wonderful right from the beginning. She made me feel at ease, explained the whole procedure thoroughly as well as provided me with post-op information.

Her staff was wonderful, as well. I'm sure I made a pest of myself trying to get approval and her staff, Debbie especially, was very patient with me and understood what a huge decision this was for me. This is a very well run, professional practice and I would recommend Dr. Hamad to anyone.

My surgeon is Dr. Anita Courcoulas. I was only in her office once for my consultation. I know 3 people that she has performed Rny on. They all have had no complications. My aunt got her first dose of "dumping" about 2 mos after surgery. It was in the middle of the night and she called the office to ask the answering service to have someone call her back. Dr. courcoulas had called her back w/ in 5 min. My aunt was so impressed because she had called back her self and didn't have another doc call her back. The one thing that i really do like about her is that she has soooo many patients but she takes the time out to care for all of them.
Before my consultation just like most of you i did a lot of research on my surgery. I was frightened a bit, because i am only 19 and there are some things that i was worried about. As soon as i went into the doc office. I just felt like everything was going to be alright. The staff is WONDERFUL and so helpful. Then theres Doc. Courcoulas who is just the sweatest person. She discribed the pro's and con's and then let my family ask any questions that they had.(my mom, aunt, and boyfriend went with me to my consultation) She sat there with us until we were all done asking questions.
I do have to advise you of one thing though. On Nov 8, 2002 when i called to schedule my consultation i never got an appointment until March 24, 2003. But after that i scheduled my pre-op testing and was done on April 30, 2003. We had a problem with the psych. He wouldn't fax my evaluation over. But as soon as he faxed over my info. they had my folder faxed to the insurance company that day and I had an approval 5 days later. Her staff is wonderful like i said. I do advise you to consider Dr. Courcoulas if you are in traveling range. Her and her staff are just the most wonderful people. and she has been doing bariatric surgery for over 10 years. so she is very experienced. Overall right now i giver her a 10!!!!

What can I say? Doctors just don't come more highly recommended than Dr. Hamad. And she has an excellent track record. So far I have only met with her once during my initial consultation and as far as I am concerned she is everything a doctor/surgeon should be...professional, well informed and very interested in making sure you as her patient are completely informed as well. As far as her staff goes so far they have been great. They seem to 'know' who I am when I call even though I know for a fact that is one very busy office. And Gina her PA recognized me and said hello to me by name from across the room at my initial consult and she had only met me once several weeks earlier at a support group meeting with dozens of other people....so yeah, I feel pretty well acknowledged and in good hands with them. Also I have to mention Meg, the dietician that I talked with at my consult, by name. She couldn't have been any nicer OR any more helpful about post op diet issues. I'm a nurse and I'm here to tell you that I will take competency over bedside manner ANY day but the people at this office have both and in spades!

my first impression of dr. hamad was that she was so YOUNG! however she certainly seemed competent and had alot of knowledge about the procedure. i knew before i had my first appointment that she had trained under dr. schauer, who was the surgeon i orginally wanted, so i was pretty comfortable with her skill. she volunteered her statistics of complications with her previous patients, which impressed me, instead of skirting around such issues. i didn't care about personality as much as skill and expertise when it came to me laying on the operating table with my life in her hands. there is nothing bad that i can say about her. she is business like, short, sweet and to the point. i feel she is strict, but i think that shows she cares about her patients. she feels after care is very important. i am completely comfortable with her taking care of me. by the way, her rate of complications is very low.

Dr Hamad is a very caring doctor. She is very thorough and specific with instructions . Highly organized which does
impress me. She wanted to make sure that I understood all the good and especially the bad that can happen during my surgery. She answered all my questions and backed up her opinion. She is a soft spoken doctor. According to my research she is very qualified. I asked her how many surgeries she had to change from lap to open. She replied " 1 in 400". Due to all the information given prior to seeing Dr Hamad via video and written my visit with her both times were short. Her physicians assistant Gina spends more time with the patients. I feel that Dr Hamad weeds out the everyday questions prior to seeing her. Then when she does see you only the most important questions will remain. Then you can focus on additional instructions and get your perscriptions etc. Her office staff have been just wonderful. They are so kind and helpful. Gina gave me every phone number she has. I can even contact her during after office hours. I appreciated all the additional tests I had to go through to be approved for this surgery. The quantity is in direct proportion to the number of medical problems you have. I found out two new medical conditions that now have been treated due directly to Dr Hamads pre op testing. Dr Hamad is very structured in her after care requirements. You must come to frequent post op visits at regular intervals. You should be involved in some sort of support group . You must follow the vitamin and food instructions exactly. As Gina told me " this is a dictatorship not a democracy" . My family doctor is amazed to the degree of work involved prior to being considered for the surgery. It shows just how committed you are and your willingness to listen to what you have to do. It is a way to insure success in the future with this new tool. Dr Hamad is a perfect match for me. I feel that she will work hard to get me through this surgery. I made the correct choice in seeking out Dr Hamad.

Dr. Ramanathan is kind, caring, knowledgable and has a manner that allows easy accessiblity to ask questions and he takes his time to make sure all your questions are answered and never makes you feel rushed.
He practices with Dr Philip R. Schauer's group. The office staff environment is improving.The risks of surgery were explained by both the nurses and Dr. Ramanathan. The long list of questions I had prepared were all checked off as answered before I asked them. They, along with Dr. Ramanathan provide a thorough, structured aftercare program.
As a surgeon, he is experienced, talented and very, very compassionate. I truly believe he was the only one talented enough to have done my surgery lap.