holly123

Yes. All appointments cancelled. Apparently ACS been taken over again - this time by The Hospital Group (English company). They will be bringing over their own doctors and nurses. Was told that they are covering only patients who have had surgery with ACS since March 07. The girl on the phone didn't know if they would be in the same premises and said that Owenstown is closed. All a bit worrying!!

Hi Coco. Glad the holiday went well. Has anyone heard anything about ACS? I heard from another banded girl who is not on this site that lots of people including Kim have left and a girl who needs a port replacement was told that there is no money available to pay for it to be done!!! (Chris de Bruyne was going to do it). Just wondering if anyone has been in touch with them recently? Will fills still be going ahead next week? Has anyone been contacted by them about the change of address? '

Wonder what's going on? I did originally think that because the company that took over was a property development company, that they might be selling the premises because of how much it would be worth. I wonder if that's all it is? You'd think they would write to us to let us know.

Does this mean that Chris de Bruyne is going to be doing surgery for ACS in Belgium? I really didn't think he would want to be associated with them after all the problems. Are the two nurses, Chris and Frederick working for Chris de Bruyne? Its all very confusing:huh2: I still think our main worry is what happens during the 3 weeks that the Belgian nurses aren't here if someone is overfilled or has an emergency. Even if Chris de Bruyne is going to be working with ACS, he is not going to be available here all the time. I agree with you Coco about the fills until you hit your "sweet spot". As you know well, it has taken me a whole year to get here. Although, we do need to be careful about not getting overfilled with no-one here to defill us!

I was always able to eat normally after a fill until this last one. You just haven't got to the right level yet Gilly. I now have 6mls in and its the first time I had to stay on liquids for a few days after a fill. Keep making appts for every 3 weeks until you get there. I would just be careful about getting too much in at once, because those Belgian nurses won't be there to unfill us if we're overfilled!

Found an interesting website which compares the lap band which Jerome fits (heliogast) with the original Lap Band. http://www.profweiner.com/PDF/Blanco-Engert.pdf It shows that the people in the study who had the heliogast band lost weight slower, took longer to get to the right restriction level, had more infections and more slippage!!!! Interesting reading for anyone who is finding it hard to get to the "sweet spot" like me. From reading that, it looks like the Lapband is a better band than the heliogast, I wonder why Jerome chose the heliogast? (Just read that the Heliogast is a French manufactured band - so I suppose that explains it!) It was interesting to see that people were not finding much restriction up to 5mls with the heliogast, so the surgeons contacted the manufacturer who told them to increase the volume from 5 - 9cc. So maybe that's why I have only found restriction now at 6mls? It would explain your case too Allure. Good to hear from you Allure. Haven't seen you since January. Hope you're feeling better soon and we can meet up. Glad you're a bit better Ailbhe. I was going to suggest that you might have a gallstone, because it sounded a bit like the pain I had when I had to have my gallbladder removed, but the pain didn't really ease off, so it sounds like it might just be strain. I think the Belgian Doctors use the Lapband, not the heliogast. Wonder is that why they have less infections!!

Welcome Gilly. Don't give up. Hopefully these new Belgian nurses will be a permanent fixture in ACS and we will all get sorted out. Hopefully when you come off the liquids you will feel some restriction. If not, get straight back on for another appointment. I am up to 6mls in my band now after a year, and this is the first time I have felt real restriction. I just hope it lasts longer than a week! I have finally reached the 3 stone mark, just in time for my 1 year band anniversary. I really feel though that if I had found it easier to get fills earlier on (if I had been given fills instead of lectures!) I could have got the weight moving much faster much earlier. Anyway, hopefully I am at that elusive sweet spot now. Hope everyone is doing well.

I had my fill with Chris on Thursday too. He wanted to put in 1ml but I said no, I only wanted 1/2 because I was afraid of being overfilled (like Lil!) and have no-one in ACS to defill me. I would be a bit concerned about the amount he is prepared to put in when he is going back to Belgium the next day! Especially as a lot of people (including me) don't feel the real restrction from their fill until a week or so later. He wasn't able to tell me if he would be back again or not. He said he thinks there is an arrangement with his company and ACS but not sure! I asked him about Chris de Bruyne and he didn't mention working with him but did say he knew him. I was late in for my appointment but was in and out very quickly I didn't get to ask anyone if they were from this site though. Glad to see you back Allure, hopefully you're feeling a bit better. You should know better than to mention steak to me!!!!!

I was told there would be someone available for a defill!!!! But not sure whether I trust that or not!! The girl I spoke to didn't seem to have much info at all. She just kept saying all she knew was that there would be 2 nurses there on Thursday and Friday and had no more info! So we shoud all be conservative about the amount of fill we get I think!

You're doing better than me anyway! I was banded end of April 07 and haven't even reached the 3 stone mark yet!!

I will be in there around 12.00 on Thursday. Anyone else at that time?

I have an appointment for a fill on Thursday 17th too. ACS rang me to offer it because I had been on to them a few times enquiring about going to Belfast, so I was on their list. I think people were annoyed that they hadn't been told about these new nurses doing fills but I don't think ACS were contacting everyone, just anyone who had already rang up looking for a fill. By the way, have they been paying people's train fare or petrol bill for going up there? They told me they wouldn't pay mine!!! Could someone please post the phone number for Chris de Brune for fills in Dublin? I have a friend who was banded in Belgium who would like to go to him and I am too lazy to go back through the pages to look for it! Thank you!!!

I know!!! I have just eaten a lindt bunny!! Dark chocolate which I hate! But all the nice stuff has gone but I am still eating it! I definitely have a chocolate addiction!

I think (please correct me if I'm wrong!) that this is normal procedure. ACS have sold because they are in debt so this would be a meeting to come to agreements with their creditors. I don't think this changes the fact that they have sold the company.

My thighs and tummy are the worst too. Although its too soon to say cos I still have so much weight left to lose!

I wonder if we could get a group discount Lil and Coco! Would love a bit of lipo and an eye lift!!!

I suppose we will just have to wait and see....!!!

My husband is convinced they will be turning the properties into apartments! Both Dublin clinics are prime property! Don't know about the Galway and Belfast ones. Who knows???

I just googled that company and found a story from a Galway based radio station saying that the jobs in the Galway Cosmetic Surgery Company ACs are safe now that this Artisan Construction Co have bought it!!!! Why would property developers buy a cosmetic surgery clinic?

We need to remember that the newspaper is after a story and happy banded patients do not make a good story to sell newspapers. I definitely feel that giving them more fuel for their story is the wrong way to go. As I said before, Jerome is being used as a scapegoat to get at ACS. I strongly feel that if it wasn't for the newspaper, Jerome would still be here. Hopefully there will be a positive outcome from medical council's investigation and Jerome will be able to return. Until then, we all await the letter from ACS and hope that they can get us looked after safely until Jerome can return!

I agree that the media are not helping our position. I agree with Lil that it is unlikely that Jerome will come back again to Belfast after this. These articles in the Mail on Sunday are totally one sided. They are making it sound like Jerome has High court cases pending against him by band patients and as far as I am aware, it is actually other plastic surgeons who were employed by ACS who have cases against them for tummy tucks etc not Jerome. I know of several people who rang the journalist from The Mail on Sunday stating that they were happy with the treatment they had from Jerome and stating their support for him, but he didn't mention this in his article. I do feel that Jerome is being used as a scapegoat to get at ACS. I really don't think it would help our cause to go to the media - all they want is a story, they're not concerned about whether we are getting aftercare or not. Someone obviously tipped off this journalist about Lou doing fills, and now she is gone, about Jerome doing fills in Belfast and that might be the end of that too. I think we need to deal diretly with ACS, as soon as we know what our legal position is.

I would really be grateful if we do have a meeting could it be held at the weekend or evening as my job does not allow for time off (no trip to Belfast for me!). Thanks!

Hi all I haven't posted here for ages. Was banded nearly a year ago in ACS. Was happy with Jerome as a surgeon and the aftercare he provided while he was still in the country. Found Tara very difficult to deal with - had to practically beg for a fill (which she was unable to give me). Lou knew her stuff but I felt like a small child up against the headmistress each time I saw her! Not very happy with my weight loss to be honest - only 37lbs in a year. I am just so angry about the present situation with ACS. If over 300 people were banded in that first year, then ACS have over 3 million euro of our money. In my opinion, that would buy a lot of stamps to post a letter to their clients to let them know what the situation is. They never even informed us that our surgeon was gone - we had to find that out in the newspaper! The present situation of travelling to Belfast for a fill seems crazy to me. Surely as any doctor will tell you, its crucial to be close to medical care after a fill! What happens if you get overfilled in Belfast - who is going to defill you? Do you wait another month for Jerome to return? Surely the reason we all decided to have the op here instead of the UK or Belgium was for convenience for fills and to have our surgeon on call in case of emergency? Taking a day off work to travel 3 hours to Belfast and 3 hours back, is just not an option for me. If it was, I would have saved my money and gone to Belgium! How many more of us have to be rushed into hospital before we take action? I was at the last meeting and was really surprised at how few people turned up, considering how many people on here are stating how unhappy they are. ACS are able to treat us like this because they know we want to remain anonymous and they are taking advantage of this. I have taken my own steps as was agreed at the meeting to get some answers from ACS, but I really feel that there is strength in numbers. Surely someone on this forum has a solicitor friend that they could confide in to find out where we stand legally. I am happy to attend another meeting and feel that we should all get together to decide what to do, but my gut feeling is that only the same few will turn up again. I went to the trouble of drafting a group letter for the last meeting, but we felt that only four signatures was not enough to warrant sending it. Are we going to carry on complaining on here or are we going to do something? I think turning up on their doorstep isn't really the first step. What are the chances of the person we need to see being there? All we would get is another receptionist who hasn't got a clue what's going on. I would think the woman herself is lying low at the moment. If we could just find out our legal position then we could start from there. I really feel this is the first step. I don't think there is any point in meeting until we know where we stand legally. (sorry for the long post!)

Just wondering if anyone else experienced this. I had my band fitted two weeks ago 28th April. Over the last few days I have noticed that the port site and all along where the tube would be coming from the port, is a bit red and feels hot to the touch. I do not feel unwell or have a temperature or discomfort or anything, in fact I feel great! Did anyone else have this, is it normal? Do you think I might have an infection?

Sorry everyone but the time of the meeting in Bewleys hotel has been changed again to 11.30 am. As you can imagine, its very difficult to arrange a time and place that suits everyone, but hopefully this is the last time change!