Gotcha

I'm about to get banded but am concerned that my surgeon does the procedure in his office. He's Board Certified and trained at a very prestigious hospital, has impeccable references, etc., but I've not heard of other surgeons doing this procedure in their office. Anyone have experience with this?

Okay, so I called and they said that they do the procedure at the local hospital's ambulatory center, which would be just fine because it's a top notch facility with all the appropriate professionals attending. However, I am positive that the surgeon said they do the procedure "right here in the office" so I'll have to talk to him directly about that. I went to the orientation with a friend who also heard the same thing I did, but I'll give him a chance to explain. His native language is not English so it may have been a communication glitch. To be continued...

Thank you ladies for your insight. You're absolutely right -- might as well test them early! I'm calling the office right now and will let you know what they say...

Here's some additional details so you can help me think: His office is located in a medical enclave (ie, where there are a number of medical office buildings surrounding the hospital) and they occupy two suites (one for consultations, the other one for the nutritionist and psychiatrist). I haven't seen the nutritionist side yet, but the consultation suite is rather small, with 3 exam rooms and a receiving area. Funny thing is, I can't imagine where in the office it is that they do the surgery if it's not the patient rooms because I didn't see any other suitable spaces. I may have missed it of course, but I wonder; will definitely ask to see the facilities next time! Another thing is, I looked up the doctors credentials again and, while he is associated with a number of prestigious hospitals in the LA area, he is not affiliated with the hospital within the medical enclave where the office is located. I have to check on the protocol in such cases because his affiliated hospitals would be way to far in LA traffic to be of any use in an emergency. It could be that other doctors in the practice have hospital privileges at that particular location even if my surgeon personally doesn't, but I'm not sure how that would work. They also did not mention during the presentation how anesthesia would be handled (or by whom), but it might just be that they couldn't cover all the details during a general presentation (and none of the attendees asked either), but it's a great question. What do you think?

Hi Kat: Thanks for your response -- you raise some VERY important issues; I will definitely be asking these questions next time I talk to him. As it is, I'm nervous enough about the procedure so this "detail" just stresses me out even more! By "Board Certified" I mean he has been certified by the California Board of Medicine, which is the highest accreditation for a physician, and is required to legally practice medicine. In his case, he's certified in both plastic surgery and general surgery, plus he did a fellowship in bariatric gastric surgery. I haven't found a single negative report on him, which is good, but on the other hand, I don't want to be the first one either, lol! I think I'll also ask to see his operating room and the equipment he'll be using just to be sure. This medical practice has been featured in the Dr. 90210 TV show (not that that means absolutely anything with regard to surgical competency!) and they have a number of centers around the SoCal area. They seem to have a "choice" clientele and people flying in from other places to be treated here, but again, that doesn't necessarily attest to anything more than good PR... I'll keep you posted re: his responses to the questions you pose. Thanks again for your valuable input and the warm welcome!

I can imagine where you're going; my sister had bypass surgery and one of the most disturbing side effects she's suffered, even now, is a very significant increase in salivation. It has diminished a bit in the past year, but it's still such that she's very frustrated about it. I'm considering the lap band myself but pause whenever I think about this particular side effect...