NON-Surgeon Reviews

[Larra]

Will, so glad you checked this guy out carefully! It's sad and shameful that a medical "tourism" business - and remember that they are running a business, not a philanthropy - would send you to this surgeon just because that is who they are affiliated with, NOT because he was the right surgeon for you or anyone else wanting a DS, and even sadder that he would have done a half-assed DS had you not asked the right questions and had you not known that a cc of 190 cm was going to doom your DS to failure.

I hope you will now get in touch with the DS surgeons in Mexico who are experienced and do it right and get the medical care that you need.

And to anyone else who comes to this website and finds that your plans that you thought you had made so carefully and already have in place get blasted by the vets here, it isn't that we want to be mean or upset you, it's because we care. If you are one of those people who really wants nothing but validation and are not open to people telling you that your plans aren't good, you won't be very happy here. But if you can keep an open mind and recognize that there is more to this business than what someone out to make a buck has told you, you can learn so much here and make a better plan. Will, ya done good! I wish everyone was equally willing to undo a plan once new information is made available to them.

 

[Mike Powers]

Diana....I'd like to give some information on this if you don't mind. Maybe it will help others.

(DISCLAIMER) I'm NOT trying to bad mouth my surgeon!

My surgeon is Hugh Houston in Nashville TN. I'm scheduled for March 12th. I found him on DSFacts and chose him because he does DS lap. He does advertise DS on his website. When I got to my initial appt he said he "wasn't really doing DS anymore because a lot of DSrs end up on someone's ER doorstep dead" (I did remind him that they advertise DS) From what I could gather he had a bad experience with a patient, but he wouldn't give details. He did push me to just do sleeve. After explaining that I'm an employee of the facility where he does surgery (I happen to know they are all about pt satisfaction and I brought that up), a senior nursing student (so I do have "some" knowledge about the medical field even if it is considered "novice"), and someone who only wants to pay for surgery ONCE....he said he would consider doing DS....IF....IF....IF....I went home and really researched/thought about it for the 90 days I had to wait for insurance. When I went for my final appt in January he had marked my file and insurance paperwork for VSG. Of course I pulled the reigns!!!! I did my research. I knew my information. I told him again that I was there for DS and if he didn't want to do it that was fine. Totally fine. I would be willing to go to Knoxville where they are doing DS. He made me teach him about DS. Literally we spent and hour and a half together. Me teaching him all I know. Him asking me questions. Me asking HIM questions. It felt like it went on forever. He finally said..."since you know about DS....you can have one". They had to redo all of my paperwork. When I did that and signed my consent I had them change my consent so that if can't DS me then I don't want anything. (DOCUMENTATION!!!!!) I think he's an excellent surgeon who may have had some noncompliant patients and he felt burned. This is understandable. Not everyone is a candidate for DS, but I know that I am. I had to really fight for what I wanted.

I'd also like to add that it takes a lot to stand up against the "norm" and an experienced doctor. I've had practice as I've had 2 of my 4 babies at home with a midwife.....on purpose. I certainly know how to advocate for myself and my body. If I don't, who else will? Right?!

Oh....and we did discuss specifics about the anatomy of DS. He made me explain it to him. He also asked me how long I wanted my common channel. He said it was up to me that whatever I was comfortable with he would be willing to do...within reason.

What I found specifically beneficial regarding your story was the consent -DS or nothing! Awesome! Thanks

 

[Will2014]

Will, so glad you checked this guy out carefully! It's sad and shameful that a medical "tourism" business - and remember that they are running a business, not a philanthropy - would send you to this surgeon just because that is who they are affiliated with, NOT because he was the right surgeon for you or anyone else wanting a DS, and even sadder that he would have done a half-assed DS had you not asked the right questions and had you not known that a cc of 190 cm was going to doom your DS to failure.

I hope you will now get in touch with the DS surgeons in Mexico who are experienced and do it right and get the medical care that you need.

And to anyone else who comes to this website and finds that your plans that you thought you had made so carefully and already have in place get blasted by the vets here, it isn't that we want to be mean or upset you, it's because we care. If you are one of those people who really wants nothing but validation and are not open to people telling you that your plans aren't good, you won't be very happy here. But if you can keep an open mind and recognize that there is more to this business than what someone out to make a buck has told you, you can learn so much here and make a better plan. Will, ya done good! I wish everyone was equally willing to undo a plan once new information is made available to them.

Thanks much Larra! Yeah, I knew that the only way I can have a true chance to hit my goal weight of 190lbs is via the duodenal switch procedure. Any lesser forms of this would doom me to failure, and at this point in my life I just couldn't let that happen. We are all adults here, and getting to and speaking the truth should be our objective. How can we possibly help each other cope with all we need to, if we are constantly blowing smoke up each others keisters?

 

[Larra]

I agree. I felt the same way about the DS being the only operation that would work for me longterm, and also agree about us being honest with one another. The folks who are not open to criticism of their choices - and who usually take this as criticism of themselves and not of their choices and get very upset - people who are only seeking validation and not real info or support, tend not to be happy in this group. That's unfortunate, because they may need our help more than anyone else, yet are not able to take advantage of it. Sad, but we can't help everyone.

 

[jjordan8130]

What I found specifically beneficial regarding your story was the consent -DS or nothing! Awesome! Thanks

@Mike Powers I did make it a point to watch the wording on my consent. I felt like he was trying to bait and switch me. He and I have a very interesting relationship. I had my follow up today and it wasn't good. I'm doing great. That's not the issue. He's a great surgeon, but he's an asshole. Period. I won't refer anyone to him for DS. The only way I'd send someone there is for a specialized revision of some sort. He's a great cutter, but that's it. I'm still trying to decide what to do with the horrible things he said at my appt today. I'm considering switching practices for all my post op care, but afriad to at this point. Like I said, I'm doing great so far, but don't know if in the future I will need revision of common channel or anything like that. I'm just hesitant. At first his obnoxious and rude attitude didn't bother me. I just gave it right back to him. Today he stepped WAY out of line with his comments.

 

[Elizabeth N.]

Wowzers. Care to share his asshole-ishness?

 

[jjordan8130]

Sure! For the sake of not re-typing it I'm copying over the message that sent to my angel (who was his first DS)


(((When he asked me how I was doing I said "I said I'm doing great. The first two weeks were so hard. He said "they were hell weren't they?" I said oh yes...I almost called you telling you I'd made a mistake. (I laughed it off....I'm VERY happy with my decision now) He said "you know what I would have told you? I would have said it's not my fucking problem anymore. You made your choice and I got paid"
( Are you serious?! How about an appropriate response?! How about "you know what Jessica, that's normal. Everyone has a hard time the first few weeks? Are you feeling better about it now?" I just sat there in shock. I couldn't move)
Then he proceded to say You marked that you're eating 800 calories a day. That absurd. You should be eating 400 a day. You've probably been eating a lot of fat haven't you? You haven't lost enough weight (34 pounds in 6 weeks). It's because you must be eating fat. Are you eating fat Jessica? Beef? Sour Cream? Bacon? (I answered yes...still shocked) Well...I obviously failed to explain to you the your malabsorption won't kick in until 1 year. At that time you can eat beef, butter, mayo, bacon, and sourcream...but not now. That's why you haven't lost a lot of weight. You're not on target for where you should be. You need to eat like you only have a sleeve for the first year so you can maximize your weight loss.
I sat there just shocked. I said Ok...thanks and got my stuff and literally walked out of the room. I left him behind. Besides the obvious asshole comment about it's not his "fucking problem" and forgetting who I was....I feel like I'm right on track with 34 pounds. That's aroud 5 pounds a week. What's wrong with that??? I don't get it. My goal is 2-3 pounds a week like a normal person SO MY HAIR DOESN'T FALL OUT FROM SHOCK!!!! I'm ok with that rate of loss. I'm not looking to drop 50 pounds in 4 weeks. BTW-I left his office and got a double cheeseburger (no bun). So yeah..I had FAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And protein!!!!!! )))))

So here's my issue. I'm a big girl. I wear my big girl panties every day. I'm not easily offended or pissed off. I totally understand that it was MY decision. He didn't want to DS me, but I pushed for it anyway (I suspect it was all about making money off of 2 surgeries since openly admitted that a lot of his sleeve pts would be back for DS) I had a rough first couple of weeks. I believe that's totally normal. I thought all kinds of things. I wondered what I had done to myself....why I made the decision etc. It was a transition for me. It still is. I was truly addicted to food and it was totally taken away for awhile. I cried a lot. A LOT. Today I feel 100 times better and I know that I made a great decision. I wouldn't change it for anything. His response was totally inappropriate. Period. It's not the first time he's acted like that. I'm sure it won't be the last. I'm just not going to pay him to treat me like shit. So that's really it. He's an asshole. I knew that from day 1, but again...it was MY choice to go to him. I totally own it. Looking back I wish I had considered traveling to someone who actually cares about their patients.

 

[Elizabeth N.]

Holy FUCK. What a prick!!!! I'd fire his arrogant ass just as soon as I was healed and really out of the woods as far as actual surgical/postop issues go.

And where the FUCK does he get the idea that malabsorption doesn't kick in for a year!?!!?!!! FUCK him and the horse he rode in on!!

 

[brooklyngirl]

Sure! For the sake of not re-typing it I'm copying over the message that sent to my angel (who was his first DS)


(((When he asked me how I was doing I said "I said I'm doing great. The first two weeks were so hard. He said "they were hell weren't they?" I said oh yes...I almost called you telling you I'd made a mistake. (I laughed it off....I'm VERY happy with my decision now) He said "you know what I would have told you? I would have said it's not my fucking problem anymore. You made your choice and I got paid"
( Are you serious?! How about an appropriate response?! How about "you know what Jessica, that's normal. Everyone has a hard time the first few weeks? Are you feeling better about it now?" I just sat there in shock. I couldn't move)
Then he proceded to say You marked that you're eating 800 calories a day. That absurd. You should be eating 400 a day. You've probably been eating a lot of fat haven't you? You haven't lost enough weight (34 pounds in 6 weeks). It's because you must be eating fat. Are you eating fat Jessica? Beef? Sour Cream? Bacon? (I answered yes...still shocked) Well...I obviously failed to explain to you the your malabsorption won't kick in until 1 year. At that time you can eat beef, butter, mayo, bacon, and sourcream...but not now. That's why you haven't lost a lot of weight. You're not on target for where you should be. You need to eat like you only have a sleeve for the first year so you can maximize your weight loss.
I sat there just shocked. I said Ok...thanks and got my stuff and literally walked out of the room. I left him behind. Besides the obvious asshole comment about it's not his "fucking problem" and forgetting who I was....I feel like I'm right on track with 34 pounds. That's aroud 5 pounds a week. What's wrong with that??? I don't get it. My goal is 2-3 pounds a week like a normal person SO MY HAIR DOESN'T FALL OUT FROM SHOCK!!!! I'm ok with that rate of loss. I'm not looking to drop 50 pounds in 4 weeks. BTW-I left his office and got a double cheeseburger (no bun). So yeah..I had FAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And protein!!!!!! )))))

So here's my issue. I'm a big girl. I wear my big girl panties every day. I'm not easily offended or pissed off. I totally understand that it was MY decision. He didn't want to DS me, but I pushed for it anyway (I suspect it was all about making money off of 2 surgeries since openly admitted that a lot of his sleeve pts would be back for DS) I had a rough first couple of weeks. I believe that's totally normal. I thought all kinds of things. I wondered what I had done to myself....why I made the decision etc. It was a transition for me. It still is. I was truly addicted to food and it was totally taken away for awhile. I cried a lot. A LOT. Today I feel 100 times better and I know that I made a great decision. I wouldn't change it for anything. His response was totally inappropriate. Period. It's not the first time he's acted like that. I'm sure it won't be the last. I'm just not going to pay him to treat me like shit. So that's really it. He's an asshole. I knew that from day 1, but again...it was MY choice to go to him. I totally own it. Looking back I wish I had considered traveling to someone who actually cares about their patients.

Ho. Lee. Shit.
I cannot believe a medical professional said that to you in his office. That's beyond unprofessional. We all know there are asshole surgeons who think those things, but to say it OUT LOUD to a patient?!? I'm stunned, and I'm not sure what I'd do if I were in your situation because I understand that you feel you may need him someday. I don't remember where you live, is there not another qualified Dr. for aftercare anywhere nearby?

 

[brooklyngirl]

And if he REALLY was so against doing the DS, he should've done the professional thing and referred you to someone else. Not cut you open and slice and dice your insides and then shame you for it. Disgusting.

 

[jjordan8130]

Everytime I take a shit I can tell I have malabsorption!!! DOES HE THINK I'M THAT FUCKING STUPID?!!!! He also said that all DSrs should eat like sleeves for life (ya know.....400-600 cals a day of lean protein etc) (can you hear the sarcasm?!) and that would prevent ALLLLLL their post op nutrition complications! Yeah...that makes TOTAL sense doesn't it?! YEAH NOT!!!!! If you know anything at all about DS you know that's not true.

And for the record. I have eaten bacon (it was one of the first solid things I could get down without issues!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), burgers, cheese, yogurt, sour cream, regular mayo....hell yeah I ate it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SO WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For the weight loss end of things. Everyone loses at different rates. I'm truly happy with my rate. I'm the one who has to live with it. I'm eating well, staying hydrated, and becoming more active. I think my DS is totally capable of doing it's job. The end!

 

[jjordan8130]

@brooklyngirl

YES! I totally agree! If it was so risky he shouldn't have agreed to do it. I called him out on it. That's when he admitted he would be doing revisions for his sleeve pts to DS. That's when he also said that he would DS me because I mentioned traveling to get what I wanted. (I think it's about the money for sure) There is another DS surgeon nearby, but I don't think he does a lot of them. I'm sure I could transfer to him for postop follow up, but I'm still fresh and if I have an issue I know my guy is vetted and very skilled. I kinda feel stuck. I'm really going to have to think about what to do.

 

[Will2014]

Sure! For the sake of not re-typing it I'm copying over the message that sent to my angel (who was his first DS)


(((When he asked me how I was doing I said "I said I'm doing great. The first two weeks were so hard. He said "they were hell weren't they?" I said oh yes...I almost called you telling you I'd made a mistake. (I laughed it off....I'm VERY happy with my decision now) He said "you know what I would have told you? I would have said it's not my fucking problem anymore. You made your choice and I got paid"
( Are you serious?! How about an appropriate response?! How about "you know what Jessica, that's normal. Everyone has a hard time the first few weeks? Are you feeling better about it now?" I just sat there in shock. I couldn't move)
Then he proceded to say You marked that you're eating 800 calories a day. That absurd. You should be eating 400 a day. You've probably been eating a lot of fat haven't you? You haven't lost enough weight (34 pounds in 6 weeks). It's because you must be eating fat. Are you eating fat Jessica? Beef? Sour Cream? Bacon? (I answered yes...still shocked) Well...I obviously failed to explain to you the your malabsorption won't kick in until 1 year. At that time you can eat beef, butter, mayo, bacon, and sourcream...but not now. That's why you haven't lost a lot of weight. You're not on target for where you should be. You need to eat like you only have a sleeve for the first year so you can maximize your weight loss.
I sat there just shocked. I said Ok...thanks and got my stuff and literally walked out of the room. I left him behind. Besides the obvious asshole comment about it's not his "fucking problem" and forgetting who I was....I feel like I'm right on track with 34 pounds. That's aroud 5 pounds a week. What's wrong with that??? I don't get it. My goal is 2-3 pounds a week like a normal person SO MY HAIR DOESN'T FALL OUT FROM SHOCK!!!! I'm ok with that rate of loss. I'm not looking to drop 50 pounds in 4 weeks. BTW-I left his office and got a double cheeseburger (no bun). So yeah..I had FAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And protein!!!!!! )))))

So here's my issue. I'm a big girl. I wear my big girl panties every day. I'm not easily offended or pissed off. I totally understand that it was MY decision. He didn't want to DS me, but I pushed for it anyway (I suspect it was all about making money off of 2 surgeries since openly admitted that a lot of his sleeve pts would be back for DS) I had a rough first couple of weeks. I believe that's totally normal. I thought all kinds of things. I wondered what I had done to myself....why I made the decision etc. It was a transition for me. It still is. I was truly addicted to food and it was totally taken away for awhile. I cried a lot. A LOT. Today I feel 100 times better and I know that I made a great decision. I wouldn't change it for anything. His response was totally inappropriate. Period. It's not the first time he's acted like that. I'm sure it won't be the last. I'm just not going to pay him to treat me like shit. So that's really it. He's an asshole. I knew that from day 1, but again...it was MY choice to go to him. I totally own it. Looking back I wish I had considered traveling to someone who actually cares about their patients.

Great jumping Jehosephat!! Could he have been joking with you? You'd mentioned: "At first his obnoxious and rude attitude didn't bother me. I just gave it right back to him." Might he feel he has the kind of relationship with you that would allow this sort of banter? I just can't imagine anyone saying this to someone and it not being a joke. The part about the malabsorption "kicking in after a year" perplexed me. Could he have possibly meant that the initial massive weight loss from the procedure was due primarily to the restrictive sleeve lessoning hunger and thus intake, while after a year or so when the sleeve is stretched to about 75% of a "normal stomach", the malabsorptive features of the procedure become more important to weight loss? I have to assume he knows as much or more about this procedure than you or I do, and so there's gotta be an explanation for his statements. I frequently joke with a female Dr. at the hospital I work in, and in all honesty it sometimes gets pretty darn racy! If someone ever took what either of us said out of context.....it just wouldn't be good. Hehe. I've no reason to defend this guy...just suggesting a possibility. If he actually meant what he's reported to have said....my advice would be to flee post hence!

 

[jjordan8130]

I honestly sat there thinking "he must be joking? who says that?!" but in all honesty it's not the first time he's made comments like that or been totally out of line with his behavior. He's been like that since my very first appt. though. Maybe he does think he can say that to me. We work at the same hosptial. VERY RARELY do I get to floated to the floor where his patients are and even when I do I never see him. The evening before my surgery he called me at home and said "so I'm looking at your chart and I just feel like this is an accident waiting to happen. You work at the hospital. Are you sure you don't want to do sleeve instead?" Obviously I said no! I trust him as a surgeon. I know people he's operated on. Lots of them. They all have the same opinion. He's a butthead. lol

 

[Terri]

Wow @jjordan8130, sorry he's such as asshat! I would definitely do what EN said and fire him as soon as you are healed and look at the other DS surgeon near you to go to for future follow ups.