"I am prone to forgetting my vitamins, and my labs were consistently low in several areas. I tried the Multi Plus patch, and everything is now in range without issue. I forget to use it 1 or 2 times per week, but it is effective enough to work despite this. Highly recommend. "
"Terrible experience at first. It took multiple calls to schedule the consultation, as they never pick up the phone and I always had to leave a voicemail. They do not return calls. Finally scheduled a consultation. Consultation day went well enough and a preauthorization process was initiated. Now it is a couple months later and I have not heard anything back. I was told at the appointment that I would get a status update every week or 2. I have had no contact from the office. I have left messages, and none of the calls have been returned. Ridiculous. Stay away from this practice. Eventually I cancelled my original surgery date, because I just wasn't confident that they would provide support should something not go well. I changed my mind, and contacted them. This time the person scheduling surgical dates was supurb. She returned calls promptly, ensured that all questions were answered, and in general was highly professional. This changed my mind and I proceeded with the surgery. Dr. Dinick did an excellent job and was very meticulous about the process. The stay at the facility turned out to be my most pleasant hospital stay out of all of my major surgeries. Recovery has gone exceedingly well. I am not certain if they fired the one person that was so inept when I initially was trying to work with this practice, but once the office staff situation was resolved everything went beautifully. Dr. Dinick did an excellent job of getting the insurance to pay for the pannis removal too, and the cost to finish the tummy tuck seemed reasonable. I would without hesitation recommend him. "
"My first impression was deceiving. I was concerned that it was not run as a hospital, but rather a surgical center. I am still not certian if there was a major life threatening issue during a surgery or after what the care would be like, however, that aside it turned out to be the best hospital experience I have encountered. I went in for plastic sugery (tummy tuck) and the staff was highly professional. The were responsive as well pre-op, and very careful in listening for medicinal allergies or low tolerance. I am convinced that because of this it was the first time I did not wake up vomiting from a surgery, as they indicated that if I do not tolerate morphine well (even if it is unknown if I am allergic) that it would be avoided. So much better! The room was very comfortable, and absoutlely wondeful to have it a private room. I consequently was so much more able to rest. The nurses were attentive, but not overbearing. I was able to rest comfortably and if I needed anything it was provided. The staff overall was highly professional and very pleasant, and at least to the untrained eye appeared to be excellent at their jobs. I was frankly shocked at how the hospital stay was so positive, as I normally am one that absolutely hates to be in the hospital. "
"My first impression was deceiving. I was concerned that it was not run as a hospital, but rather a surgical center. I am still not certian if there was a major life threatening issue during a surgery or after what the care would be like, however, that aside it turned out to be the best hospital experience I have encountered. I went in for plastic sugery (tummy tuck) and the staff was highly professional. The were responsive as well pre-op, and very careful in listening for medicinal allergies or low tolerance. I am convinced that because of this it was the first time I did not wake up vomiting from a surgery, as they indicated that if I do not tolerate morphine well (even if it is unknown if I am allergic) that it would be avoided. So much better! The room was very comfortable, and absoutlely wondeful to have it a private room. I consequently was so much more able to rest. The nurses were attentive, but not overbearing. I was able to rest comfortably and if I needed anything it was provided. The staff overall was highly professional and very pleasant, and at least to the untrained eye appeared to be excellent at their jobs. I was frankly shocked at how the hospital stay was so positive, as I normally am one that absolutely hates to be in the hospital. "
"I am 11 days out from having the sleeve surgery performed by Dr. Chengelis. I found the pre-surgery appointment to be informative and he was very straight forward. I am not one to joke around too much about something as serious as this, and he was a good fit from a bed side manner. I also suspect that if you are a patient who prefers more small talk that indeed this would not be an issue. Most importantly, he reviewed the procedure and the pros and cons. His staff did an outstanding job of quickly securing the preauthorization and my surgery date of the 19th. I am a teacher and wanted the recovery to be finished sufficient enough to return to my classroom and the office went out of their way to maximize my break. Didn't have to miss a day of work :)
On surgery day the process was very easy. The husband was with me to check in and the staff made it super easy. Beaumont had a nice lounge for my husband to wait in with a monitor that he could look at to see updates on my status. This was very appreciated.
Post surgery I had some nausea issues so I stayed in the recovery several hours longer than expected. My husband was worried, but Dr. C did go out and update him on anything. My husband is just one to worry :) During this phase the staff was attentive, medicines given to help subside the nausea, and I was too groggy to remember much more. I do remember the second I asked for something somebody was right there.
Next stop was my room with my husband waiting. I used the pain pump maybe twice, then stopped thinking that it was causing part of the nausea. Turns out I didn't need it anyway, surprisingly little pain. I had a hiatal hernia repaired at the same time, and I found that more uncomfortable then the stomach surgery. Use the spirometer and get yourself up walking as soon as you can, as that really helped overall. I was discharged the day after surgery, although if I wanted to stay an extra day that was an option. I loved that they let me go home as I was able to rest much better! My only very minor complaint about the whole process is that it was loud. My room was across from the nurses station and that noise was a little loud for my light sleeping pattern.
The nurses in the room were highly attentive and I felt exceedingly well cared for. I don't remember Dr. C coming to visit, but the hubby said he did. I do remember a resident or something visiting.
I was tested for leaks the morning after surgery. It went well, but I was a bit scared about swallowing the barium. I was still a little nauseous, but managed to keep it down. Overall that was as bad as I expected. (I was more nervous about that then waking up from surgery for some reason.)
Recovery at home has been a piece of cake. I had surprisingly minimal pain the first few days. Enough to be cautious getting up from a chair, but nothing terrible. Within a few days I was up out of chairs without a second thought. Started walking a mile with the hubby a few days after surgery. Overall, it has been a very positive experience and I highly recommend this surgeon and the Beaumont program. If I can I will update this further down the road to document the weight loss.
Update: I am now about 3.5 months post op and lost 64 pounds. I walk 4-5 miles a day and many times do the elliptical also. What a difference! I feel like I have my life back! The pre surgery loss was 26 pounds, and overall it is difficult to put into words how much better I feel! I am completely satisfied and look forward to even more success.
Update: August 9th, 2012
Month 1- 21 pounds
Month 2- 16 pounds
Month 3- 12 pounds
Month 4- 13 pounds
Month 5- 11 pounds
Month 6- 10 pounds
Month 7- 10 pounds
Month 8- 6 pounds
GOAL!! 8 MONTHS, 6 DAYS 132 POUNDS LOST BMI UNDER 25!
Month 9 -5 pounds
Month 12 -2
Total post op: 114 pounds.
Pre op: 26
Total Loss: 140
BMI 23.9 ... Starting BMI was 42 or 43
106% EWL
Update: June 1st, 2013. Maintenance thus far has been no problem. Weight has been stable within a 5 pound range or so since goal. Still go occasionally to the support meetings and I make sure I follow-up with labs to confirm there are no issues. Looking into plastic surgery now.
Update: November 26, 2013 Lost a bit more weight for a total of 150 pounds now. Maintaining still going smoothly and overall excellent health.
Loving this sleeve!"
