bellacatgirl

Hello. I have been receiving more and more emails regarding the recent decision of Slimband to no longer support TLBC patients who had been receiving care up until this past December (2013). Slimband now says that they will not honour the lifetime long agreement that we were told we would have. That means if you want a fill then you are paying for $200 for it but only after you get a referral from your GP and have documented what you eat with a 2 Week Photo food Log. After Dr. Yau "resigned" from Slimband the other month, Slimband is now not treating any of his TLBC patients even if they pay. So if you were banded by TLBC you are being left out in the cold. Slimband said they would pass along information as to where I could go and get a fill but they never sent me the information. The support staff have been nothing but rude when myself and others have called so be aware that if you call they will treat you the same and will send you away. The good news is that I have been working on a lawsuit class action case. I have posted on this forum and had little hope that I would find anyone in the same situation I have found myself BUT I was wrong. There are many of us who want to take action against Slimband and this decision. I want to also make those who have had success aware of this because if anything happens in the future (i.e. infection) you won't get assistance from Slimband). If you want more information on any of this, please email me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com Thanks

If you were banded under TLBC (now Slimband) you might have heard that we are no longer getting the life long support system we signed up for. In fact, we now have to pay for any sort of support (fills, defills, access to a nutritionist) we might need, except for defills. Myself and several other (8) are looking for other TLBCer's who are upset by this situation. Please email me ASAP with your story, questions or concerns. Kat

I have received unsettling news that I know will upset quite a few of you. Yau is back doing surgeries at Slimband but they are trying t keep it a secret. Since Dr. Yau resigned from his position at Slimband in February of this year, his patients (including those banded under TLBC) have been told that Slimband is no longer treating them because Yau no longer works there. I called Slimband Patient Support last week and asked the following: Is Dr. Yau still working at Slimband? – the answer was no. Does Dr. Yau still work, in any capacity, out of the Prince Arthur medical clinic? – the answer was no. Are Dr. Yau’s patients, including those banded under TLBC, being supported/treated by Slimband? – the answer was no because “Dr. Yau no longer works at Slimband.” The truth is, Yau performed at least one surgery at Slimband (Prince Arthur) on Monday April 7th 2014. This information was voluntarily given to me via staff members that currently work at Slimband. Be aware that Slimband will do anything to deny he is back working there, including taking his name off his parking spot. So why did he resign when he clearly still continues to work there? Well we can’t be sure but it very likely has to do with the fact that if Yau appeared not to be working at Slimband then they would be able to stop treating his patients, including those banded under TLBC who were guaranteed a lifelong support system without additional cost. We seriously need to do something about this. There is a lawsuit underway for those banded under TLBC because our agreement of a lifelong support system is not being honoured. If you are in this situation please email 2014takeaction@gmail.com. My worry is that other Slimband patients banded under Yau are also not being supported because “Yau no longer works at Slimband.” This is a lie because he is working there. You need to do whatever you can to make others aware of this. Slimband continues to lie and this type of unprofessionalism needs to stop before others sign-up with them only to be disappointed or put in danger as a result of being refused treatment in the future.

Hello all, Now I can't give any details just yet, as myself and many others are in the process of a class action lawsuit, but if you are reading this and are thinking about getting a lapband through Slimband please don't do it. Please look into other places because there are others. When I can share more information about the concerns about Slimband I found out today, I will post again. I know it might be frustrating that I'm not sharing specifics but for right now, I needed to get the word out that those who are thinking about get banded with Slimband, please don't. And if you have a surgery planned with them, I think you should cancel and go somewhere else. Again, when I am able to share this information, I will.

Ok. I think we all need to settle down and take a few deep breathes. Attacking each other will not lead to an understanding. But perhaps there will not be an understanding between everyone because everyone's journey is different. Now my initial post has nothing to do with how the band works or doesn't work. I have lost 110lbs with the band, so I'm quite thrilled about this. Others have not had any success. For those who have not had success, I don't think it's fair for anyone to accuse you of not working with the band or sabotaging yourself. I don't know you and am therefore not going to judge you. I'm in this for myself and I have no desire to "pick" on those who haven't had a good experience. So what was my reason for coming on to this forum? Even though I have had success (therefore I'm pleased with the band) I had the sugary done in 2007 and was guaranteed a LIFETIME SUPPORT SYSTEM for $18,000. This included all fills, refills, correction surgeries, etc. And now Slimband is not honouring their agreement with me (and other banded on TLBC). Again, many of us (I've been contacted by 62 TLCBer's) have had great success and therefore we are very please with the band. OUR CONCERN is Slimband as a company. Bottom line, they are not professional. They lie. They don't inform patients of changes. They are condescending. If you make a complaint and call they will hang up on you. Their customer services is a disgrace. A surgeon at Slimband has a tendency to yell at patients post surgery. IN SUMMATION, the band is great (for me at least). Slimband as a company is great for those who are succeeding and don't have complaints but for those who have the opposite experience, it's a horrible experience. So shop around. Other places do the LapBand procedure. Ultimately it's an individual choice. Please stop hurting others with attacks. Talk about your own experience with the understanding that yours is unique and unlike others. It's not the band! It's Slimband!

Please read this post carefully. Some of you have been following the TLBC/Slimband/Dr. Yau thread on BP over the past week and I wanted to give everyone an update. As one of 3 organizers of the 2014takeaction@gmail.com email account, I can assure you that we have had an overwhelming amount of people contacting us to offer their support and interest in joining with us. These people include those banded by TLBC, some by Slimband and even former TLBC/Slimband staff members. So we’ve got a solid group and there’s a high potential for growth once we spread the word and more people go online. All of us are either interested in pursuing legal action or are looking for more information. On concerns relate to how Slimband has treated/mistreated us as TLBCer’s/Slimbanders. At this time, myself and two other woman are looking around for a lawyer who will represent us. Two of us are in Toronto and this is likely where we will be looking. But before we contact or meet with a lawyer we wanted to do a bit of leg work first. That’s where all of you come in. If you are interested I would a statement which would speak to your specific TLBC/Slimband story/experience. Please include whatever information you think is important. Please also include what concerns you have with how things are being handled. These statements will help us show/tell the lawyer what are concerns are and that there are a lot of us who want to take action. The only people who will see these statements are myself, the other 2 organizers and the lawyer. Please do not share you statements on this forum/thread. Instead, email them to me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com I have been forewarned (by a former TLBC/Slimband staff member) that Slimband will most definitely be out there posing as a TLBC bandster. This is to be expected and it’s fine as we are not doing anything illegal. But I do want to limit the amount of information we give them so that's why you should communicate via the email above. When you are able to submit your statement via this email address, please include as much information about yourself as possible. Date of surgery. Surgeon. Home city and/or province. I have some phone numbers and I will personally be calling you to chat and connect with you so if you want to share your phone number I will call you. You could include where you went to school and/or what you do for a living. If you have a LinkedIn Profile that would be a good way to connect as well. I don’t want anyone to be offended by this semi-intrusive procedure of obtaining personal information but it’s important for us, as we go forward, to only communicate with those who are serious about wanting to take action. So if you are onboard, please submit your statements/stories ASAP. Preferrably by Monday March 3rd 2014 as we will be meeting with a lawyer in the next few weeks. If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com I hope to hear from you all soon. Thank you. PS – Keep spreading the word.

Don't be fooled. He works at Slimband. See below. I find it really sketchy that when I call Slimband and ask where I can go to get a fill (because they will no longer support me) they say go to Hazati at the GreenStone Health Clinic. So Slimband won't treat me and give me fills and defills but one of their doctor's will?!?!?!? To me, it seems that not only is Slimband not honouring our agreement for a lifelong support system but one of their surgeons is taking even more of our money for fills. Ali Hazrati MD, MSc, FRCSC's Experience Medical Director, Staff Bariatric Surgeon Slimband Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Health, Wellness and Fitness industry January 2013 – Present (1 year 4 months) Toronto, Canada Area Minimally Invasive General & Bariatric Surgeon The Scarborough Hospital & Slimband Clinic Nonprofit; 1001-5000 employees; Hospital & Health Care industry 2011 – Present (3 years)

Hi All, Does anyone know the date of when Slimband was established? day/month/year? Myself and several others have called Slimband and have yet to get an answer from them. Not sure what the big secret is about. If you know, could you please email me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com or respond to this post? Thanks, Kat

Hi all, I'm considering having a gastric bypass. I currently have the band but it has done nothing for me and Slimband has been the worst to deal with. I'm currently on the Bariatic Registry List in Ontario and have my first consultation in June. I'm just looking for some advice from those who have been through it. It really scares me because I've heard the nightmares of people dying. The recovery I can deal with. I've had 4 surgeries with Slimband re: complications. I want to hear from everyone, the good, bad and ugly. I'm also worried about the access skin after weight loss.

Tom. Could you please email me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com? RoseIvy. Please also email me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com and I can give you more information.

I'm thinking of having a gastric bypass and need some help deciding. I have a lap and currently and it's not helped me at all. And there's been complications as well. Can somebody tell me their experience with the bypass? Good and/or bad?

Hello jennybean, Thanks for letting me know. If you know of another online forum that Canadians use, let me know. Kat

As you are all likely to know, there's been a lot a backlash about Slimband in the past week or so, especially since Yau resigned. As a TLBCer, I've been told that I'm no longer being supported by Slimband nor are they going to provide treatment in the future, for fills, defills, etc. I was told that they were looking to refer us to another clinic. I sent an email to Slimband to request more information about this and in the past they have always been prompt with their responses but I have yet to hear back from them. I'm sure there's a lot of people concerned about what's going on but I'm confident that TLBCer's and/or Yau's patients are not their priority anymore. In fact, they have said that we (TLBCer's/Yau's patients) are no longer their responsibility. So now that our surgeon is gone and our money has been cashed, we are being left out in the cold. I feel completely lost, confused and hopeless.

Please read this post carefully. Some of you have been following the TLBC/Slimband/Dr. Yau thread on BP over the past week and I wanted to give everyone an update. As one of 3 organizers of the 2014takeaction@gmail.com email account, I can assure you that we have had an overwhelming amount of people contacting us to offer their support and interest in joining with us. These people include those banded by TLBC, some by Slimband and even former TLBC/Slimband staff members. So we’ve got a solid group and there’s a high potential for growth once we spread the word and more people go online. All of us are either interested in pursuing legal action or are looking for more information. On concerns relate to how Slimband has treated/mistreated us as TLBCer’s/Slimbanders. At this time, myself and two other woman are looking around for a lawyer who will represent us. Two of us are in Toronto and this is likely where we will be looking. But before we contact or meet with a lawyer we wanted to do a bit of leg work first. That’s where all of you come in. If you are interested I would a statement which would speak to your specific TLBC/Slimband story/experience. Please include whatever information you think is important. Please also include what concerns you have with how things are being handled. These statements will help us show/tell the lawyer what are concerns are and that there are a lot of us who want to take action. The only people who will see these statements are myself, the other 2 organizers and the lawyer. Please do not share you statements on this forum/thread. Instead, email them to me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com I have been forewarned (by a former TLBC/Slimband staff member) that Slimband will most definitely be out there posing as a TLBC bandster. This is to be expected and it’s fine as we are not doing anything illegal. But I do want to limit the amount of information we give them so that's why you should communicate via the email above. When you are able to submit your statement via this email address, please include as much information about yourself as possible. Date of surgery. Surgeon. Home city and/or province. I have some phone numbers and I will personally be calling you to chat and connect with you so if you want to share your phone number I will call you. You could include where you went to school and/or what you do for a living. If you have a LinkedIn Profile that would be a good way to connect as well. I don’t want anyone to be offended by this semi-intrusive procedure of obtaining personal information but it’s important for us, as we go forward, to only communicate with those who are serious about wanting to take action. So if you are onboard, please submit your statements/stories ASAP. Preferrably by Monday March 3rd 2014 as we will be meeting with a lawyer in the next few weeks. If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at 2014takeaction@gmail.com I hope to hear from you all soon. Thank you. PS – Keep spreading the word.

If you are interested in getting involved or in touch with others who are upset, email 2014takeaction@gmail.com Good luck.

Ahhhh! I made a huge mistake by sending out the wrong email address. The email is 2014takeaction@gmail.com. I was wondering why I hadn't received any emails. So sorry. If you emailed to takeaction2014@gmail.com PLEASE resend your email to 2014takeaction@gmail.com I'm soooo sorry.

I have a note that says a life-time support system for the price I paid. It's at the top of my Quote Invoice which is on TLBC Letterhead. If you want to see it, please email me at takeaction2014@gmail.com Kat

Deborah! I found you. Remember me? We both had our correction surgies on October 31st 2013. We connected before surgery but when I went to find you post-op on the Slimband community to check in to see how everything went, your account was deactivated. I will assume the kicked you off just as they did me. Send me an email to takeaction2014@gmail.com Kat

If people are interested in wanting to know more, please send an email to takeaction2014@gmail.com instead of putting your contact information on this forum. There are a few of us in Toronto who are looking to take some action and we'd love to tell you more so please email me. Thanks. Kat