Surgeon Seeking Feedback

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

So, please give me some feedback:

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

Dr. Tersingi is very compassionate and really wants to help people succeed. Two of his nurses are banded. I also love the support group. He will often come to the support group and answer questions. The nurse that leads the support group is

extremely informative about the band being only a tool. Her husband is banded, several of her children and other family members are banded as well.

What do you hate? It takes a long time to get an appointment for a fill. He is very busy, but that isn't his fault. I wish fluro was available in his office. Our town is small, so it's an outpatient

appointment at the hospital which is very expensive.

What do we do well?

I am not sure what other doctors do well. Considering Dr. Tersigni is doing a blind fill, it's over with in a second and it doesn't hurt at all. We discuss my restriction and what I am

looking for with a fill. He finds the port immediately, and tells me to call the office immediately if I am having any problems.

What could we do better?

Like WasaBubbleButt said, the reasons for the post op diet need to be explained in detail. Dr. Tersigni's nurse does that, but I have seen entirely too many people posting on this board that think that because food went down right after surgery, and they say it didn't hurt, that it's okay to eat solid food a few days after surgery. So many people have no clue about the healing process

and why it's important.

Thank you for coming to this board and being willing to answer questions. It is apparent that many people who post here aren't

getting their questions answered by their own doctor.

[kyethra 0]

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

They care. When I got really sick after my band was put in and I needed to schedule a HIDA scan the office was wonderful. I had seen my primary care doctor earlier that week, after a visit to the ER, and I was having trouble scheduling that HIDA scan and I was sick and miserable and worried-- I had had bad health care experiences in the past. The office went and schedule the HIDA scan for me, and got me in right away too. And then my surgeon took out my gall bladder quickly. When I called the office because I wasn't sure I would be able to make it to the scheduled surgery they were also great-- they talked to me about which ER I should go to if I had to, who to ask for, etc. I was really impressed. And I knew that they all really did care-- I hear my doc say to the nurse at one point outside the door that he would handle the scan if he had to.

What do you hate?

Well I don't hate it, but I would like it if I could get in quicker for apointments like fills and adjustments at the local office, rather than the main office, quicker. And when I do have an apointment I tend to sit in the waiting room a while.

What do we do well?

I thought the nutristionist was great, as was the overall level of coordination. Patient education is done well.

What could we do better?

I know it can be hard to find a doctor for follow up care like fills and so forth if one had the surgery in Mexico or if one has moved. Thats a shame.

What more could we do to help you succeed?

Understand that people don't always think rationally. If I plateu or am "behaving badly" and maybe would benefit from comming in and talking to the neutritionist and others, those are some of the times I am least likely to come in, esp. if I know that I do not need a fill. Thats because I don't want to disapoint everyone, esp. the people who put the band in me, and especially after I did so well at the beginning. Thats because I think that maybe no one has to know. Maybe I'm worried they will get mad at me. Or, or something. When I stop to think rationally, I realise that isn't likely. That I would probably talk to the dietician or someone and learn something and get back on track faster. But I might not get to that rational point and the frightened me might be too loud. I suspect there are other patients like that, ones who maybe care more about what others think of them, ones who have self esteem issues, who are likely to stop comming in when this sort of thing does occur, or not come in and make contact soon enough.

How could we improve your customer experience with our practices? Offer more information/interaction online, including papers and forms.

Thank you in advance for the feedback.

[exactly150 0]

The only problem I had with my doctor is his office staff. They NEVER return phone calls. I had all that nonsense to do pre-op, upper endoscopy, psych, nutritionist, etc....But it took them FOUR months before they finally came back with a surgery date for me. then, I was told I needed another upper endoscopy because the one I had was "old". (Read: only 4 months old, because of THEM!!) Ridiculous!!!! I fought that one, I'll tell you. But, the staff treats you as if you have two heads, they can't believe you just won't go for another upper endoscopy just because they told you to.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

The only problem I had with my doctor is his office staff. They NEVER return phone calls. I had all that nonsense to do pre-op, upper endoscopy, psych, nutritionist, etc....But it took them FOUR months before they finally came back with a surgery date for me. then, I was told I needed another upper endoscopy because the one I had was "old". (Read: only 4 months old, because of THEM!!) Ridiculous!!!! I fought that one, I'll tell you. But, the staff treats you as if you have two heads, they can't believe you just won't go for another upper endoscopy just because they told you to.

I know exactly what you mean. As though they say jump and we are expected to ask how high. I'm not referring to the staff having to jump through insurance hoops like I have to, I'm talking the crappy attitudes, making me feel like I am a huge annoyance to the staff for having insurance, and being treated like part of the herd of cattle shoved through the office on a daily basis.

My insurance covers banding but it was a matter of jumping through hoops with the insurance co to get it done. I had two choices, go to a doc locally and do a six month medically supervised diet, a psych eval to tell me I have an eating disorder, a nutritionist eval to tell me I'm eating all the wrong things, a bariatric consult to tell me I'm fat, a sleep study to tell me I do not have sleep apnea, THEN the insurance would have covered it. I figured it out and by the time I would have been getting my first fill under insurance I was actually at goal by going to Mexico. Ten months, beginning to end. Now I'm at goal. How long would it have been in the US w/insurance with the six month diet?

I could go to Mexico and see the teacher for half the price or stay in the US, fight the MD office, beg and plead for them to do their jobs, hate every moment of it, and pay double the price for the student.

It just wasn't a difficult decision. My heart goes out to people that have to fight the insurance co, beg the MD office to do their jobs, deal with unanswered phone calls and questions, then by the time you finally get it done you see the doc if you are still awake before surgery and then you never see him again.

Quite frankly, for what docs charge for their 30 minutes in OR, they need to do their own follow up vs. having a nurse or MA do it. No doc is worth $3K/hour. They just aren't that special. They need to do their own damn fills, they need to spend time with their own patients.

I'm telling you, Mexico avoided all that for me. I'm not suggesting people not use insurance and go out of the country, I'm saying I am quite lucky that I was able to do that. I'm very fortunate and I know it. When I go there for fills I see my doc, he sits down and talks to me, if I'm doing something stupid he confronts me in a gentle manner, if I am doing all the right things he points that out. If I need a butt kicking he knows me well enough to know how hard he can kick because HE sees me and he has come to know me. He has thousands of bariatric patients over the years and if I pass him in the hallway he knows who I am because he knows me. He doesn't have to ask his staff who that lady is.

Bahh... this turned into a rant and I really didn't intend for that to happen. But I've worked in medicine and obtained health care in the US and I am so sick of the system.

BUT! Since I am throwing a tantrum, you know what else MD offices do that make me so angry I'm tempted to turn them into the board of nursing? When their medical assistants with six months of education refer to themselves as nurses. That is illegal to do in many (all?) states, it's a felony to pass yourself off as a nurse if you don't have the education and licensing behind you. To tell patients that they are transferring the call to a nurse and come to find out, the doc doesn't hire nurses they hire MAs, that is wrong, deceptive, and a flat out lie. Their six months of learning to take blood pressures vs. my 5 years of education. Grrrrr....

You know what? From this day forward I am going to start filing complaints with the board of nursing each and every bloody time someone tells me they are a nurse when they are not. They'll have to go before the board and explain why they are claiming they have education that they do not. They could lose their MA certification and potentially go to jail. It's a big big deal in AZ, not something the board takes lightly.

Okay, end of rant.

[LovingWhatIs 0]

Thanks for bringing the Nursing vs. MA thing up. I didn't know all this and now I will know to ask if they are Nurses or not. I had no idea. I have a feeling I have run up against this with all my parents doctors that I go to with them. I appreciate the enlightenment! Thanks,

Lisa

[vanessa29 0]

I am scheduled with Dr Mosier also for Jan. 4th. Where did he do the surgery? Are you having any problems eating, i have read some people can't eat meat or breads? I am really scared, trying to make sure i am doing the right thing.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

Thanks for bringing the Nursing vs. MA thing up. I didn't know all this and now I will know to ask if they are Nurses or not. I had no idea. I have a feeling I have run up against this with all my parents doctors that I go to with them. I appreciate the enlightenment! Thanks,

Lisa

If you ask them if they are a nurse they may say yes. So ask them which level of nursing they are, LPN, RN, or BSN. When they say Medical assistant that is not a nurse, that is a medical assistant.

Docs permit this in their offices yet can you imagine the uproar if nurses claimed to be doctors? HA!

[LovingWhatIs 0]

If you ask them if they are a nurse they may say yes. So ask them which level of nursing they are, LPN, RN, or BSN. When they say Medical assistant that is not a nurse, that is a medical assistant.

Docs permit this in their offices yet can you imagine the uproar if nurses claimed to be doctors? HA!

Yeah, they don't mind when the situation is helping the "bottom line" by lower salaries... Good point. sheesh.

[IndioGirl55 32]

Working with gastric band patients has been a wonderful blessing to me.

You guys do amazing things and inspire me every day.

It occurred to me today that you could give me some very valuable feedback on how we, as surgeons, can improve our service to you.

So, please give me some feedback:

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

What do you hate?

What do we do well?

What could we do better?

What more could we do to help you succeed?

How could we improve your customer experience with our practices?

Thank you in advance for the feedback.

brad

#1 I love the personal attention that I get from Dr Bobby and his staff

and that they go through every thing with you - nutrion - exercise - menus - I have a whole binder with info - I even had homework...

#2 The wait when you have an appointment - but this is all doctors offices..

#3 goes back to #1 - personal attention (i have his cell phone #) and that when he sits down to talk with you - it's real and not rushed.

#4 - I don't think my doc could do any better than what he has done so far

#5 - goes back to waiting - but I guess if he takes the time to talk to each of his patients that can delay the next appointment

I love my doc and his staff !!!!

[LaughingLady 0]

Hello! Very nice of you to ask for some feedback. Here is some of mine..

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

My surgeon is located in Memphis TN. His practice has a great staff. Everyone that works with him is very helpful and nice. My surgeon is one of the best technically but he has the personality of a brick and an ego the size of Texas. He can be very cold and sometime hurtful but he is one of the best at the procedure. And I hired him to cut me open, not marry me so I wanted the best. His staff is so helpful that it makes up for his lack of bedside manner. If his staff had been as cold, I would have went elsewhere, skill or no skill.

What do you hate?

My main dislike about my surgeon is his personality. Just doesn't have one at least not professionally that I have seen. What do I hate about the surgery itself...nothing that I can say so far. I've been banded about 3 months and no major issues.

What do we do well?

I think all the prework that has to be completed (nutritionist, psychological, lots of prep info) is great. I knew exactly what to expect and what I was getting into. My doctor did a great job of this.

What could we do better?

Recognize that being fat doesn't equal being stupid or being weak. Yes, I have/had an issue with food and was weak around it but I also run a very successful business, probably make about as much as my doctor and I am not stupid. Those fat cells didn't suffocate my brain, thank you very much.

What more could we do to help you succeed?

My doctor has support group meetings, follow-up counseling provided, etc. I think he does pretty well at that honestly. Also, this website is great.

How could we improve your customer experience with our practices?

Treat us with the same respect as you would expect to be treated with yourself. That is really the core of it in my mind.

Thanks! Hope this helps.

[steph_co 9]

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

My doctor was very friendly, excellent bed-side manner. The FNP that assists him with surgery seems to genuinely care about people. The social worker that did the psych-eval gave me great suggestions for dealing with life after the band and openly welcomes emails and contact with her for support. She spoke quite thoroughly about the possible danger of addiction transfer and how to avoid it. The surgery center that he is in partnership with was excellent! I LOVED it. Clean, new, state-of-the-art. The staff was very caring, very kind and helpful. Excellent follow-up from the surgical center staff after my op.

What do you hate?

His receptionist is a little short on the phone. She seems okay in person, her phone manners just aren't very good.

What do we do well?

Genuinely caring while I'm in the office.

What could we do better?

I'm not sure...I just kind of feel a little alone out here with this band. Of course, I live 3 hours from my doctor's office, so maybe that makes a difference?

What more could we do to help you succeed?

Hmmmm. I think talking more to patients about the pains or possible problems after the surgery. A lot of that I have read on these boards, so I was prepared...but not everybody comes to boards like these. Also talking about under which circumstances it would be absolutely necessary for the patient to call the band doctor (possible signs of erosion or slippage, for instance).

How could we improve your customer experience with our practices?

The only thing I can think of is because of my own experience - make sure that your receptionist knows how to sound welcoming on the phone. She/he is the gateway to your office. You don't want it to sound like you're ALL like that...but that's what it would seem like if I didn't know the whole staff.

[kacee 3]

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

He's been around doing the band since it was authorized by the FDA....he is NOT a newcomer. He has done thousands. He is totally non-judgmental.

What do you hate?

Nothing to hate at all, except he's in the meical center area which is a bugger to get to in Houston.

What do we do well?

Just keep doing that voo doo that you do so well!

What could we do better?

EDUCATION!!!!! The doctor gives you LIMITED ammunition before the bandster hell period. There needs to be some serious education about what to expect. Don't you notice that a MAJORITY of people who are newbies are going "Why am I feeling this way? Am I screwing up? Why can I eat?" right after banding. People need to be educated that the band itself isn't doing the work, it is the restriction, which may not come sometimes for several MONTHS (and yes, I know you said that every fill should be perfect...and my fills were all done with a flouro., so they were dialed right in....but for some reason, whether it is the fat deposits on the stomach or what and the relative large loss up front after banding, the first few fills notoriously don't produce excellent results and they have to "keep at it" for a while. (I am speaking in generalities of course because everyone is different....I'm looking at the "numbers" here). I know doctors are hesitant to give anything but

1. This is what you COULD do with the band

2. These are potential complications

However, I think they need to cowboy up and provide more intensive education for their patients on handling the pitfalls that will probably be experienced after surgery. I know I read between the lines and picked up a lot, so when the feelings of extreme hunger, ability to eat what I though were large amounts, etc., came on me...I was able to go..."Okay, this is phase two. I knew it was coming." Didn't learn that from my doctor. Maybe doctors are afraid of "scaring" their patients away with the information....

What more could we do to help you succeed?

How could we improve your customer experience with our practices?

Just keep having knowledgeable staff on hand to answer questions and encourage your patients to call regardless of how silly they may feel.

[lorid 0]

:clap2:

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

He has an attitude of truly wanting to see me succeed in losing the weight. He aggressively treats complications and leaves nothing to assumption. I had trouble w/ burning in the first months after surgery and he unfilled the band and did a scope to make sure there weren't ulcers. He has done over a hundred procedures and is obviously very knowledgeable and skilled at what he does.

What do you hate?

He does not have a team approach to his bariatric practice. I am an RN at my local hospital. They launched a bariatric program 6 months after I had my surgery in a nearby town. The patients at our hospital routinely see a dietitian, an exercise physiologist and have access to a number of staff members who have had bariatric surgery and are willing to give support whenever needed. I have never seen a dietitian or an exercise physiologist as a part of my treatment. When I have needed emotional support or suggestions about struggling with the challenge of changing my eating habits, his staff has often been curt and very discouraging in the way they have reacted.

What more could we do to help you succeed?

Have a team approach to your practice. Ensure that your team members are sensitive to the disease called morbid obesity and that they do not label your patients with the common assumptions most ppl make of overweight patients. Whether they voice their opinions or not makes no difference—their attitude toward “fat ppl” comes through LOUD and CLEAR.

Use “tough love” when necessary. My surgeon came down on me pretty hard at the second visit when he thought I wasn't being compliant. It upset me because I was trying to do everything correctly. It is very difficult to take in all the information thrown at one in the beginning and because I didn't understand about not drinking Water with my meals I had stretched my stomach to the point of considerable irritation. Being an RN I appreciated the severity of his reaction even though it upset me at the time. Patients need to understand just how serious non-compliance can be in causing problems.

How could we improve your customer experience with our practices?

By doing just what you have done here! ASK the patient!

[Jeni 85 0]

If you ask them if they are a nurse they may say yes. So ask them which level of nursing they are, LPN, RN, or BSN. When they say Medical assistant that is not a nurse, that is a medical assistant.

Docs permit this in their offices yet can you imagine the uproar if nurses claimed to be doctors? HA!

Lol, I'm actually an CMA... and i know fellow CMA's that claim their nurses.. me on the other hand i tell the truth .. i know i still got a lot to learn and i know i'm not a nurse!!! (but i am going back to nursing school so one day i will be able to say that and feel great about it)

I feel that it is really important to be truthful with the patient so you earn their trust... especially working in Pediatrics.. you need to have the parents trust you.. because if they don't what makes you think the kids will...

[rebandit 0]

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice?

The thing that made me pick my surgeon is that he advertises as the dr. with the most lap band experience in U.S.A.

I now dont even know if that is true.

What do you hate?

I hate that I called the office to have the surgery (self pay) and they told me to come in for a siminar and I had the surgery 5 days later. No real pre op services. He has really not made himself available for questions. 30 seconds in and out for fills .

What do we do well?

Well id say that the actual surgery is the best of my experience. no infections at first.

What could we do better?

Inform, INform, Inform and demand psyche evals. Take time to actually look at a patient and see if he or she is concerned about something. Sometimes the patient knows whats going on inside himself more then the Dr. does.

What more could we do to help you succeed?

Suggest more support or make it a mandatory part of practice.

How could we improve your customer experience with our practice? My first band was at physicians surgi center and it was a nightmare. We had to wake from our anesthesia and sit in a room full of patients all trying to wake up. It was like waking from the dead and It was very scary. My second surgery was at University General and it was my best hospital stay ever.Use good hospitals and take more then 30 seconds with a patient. I think for the drs. its just routine but for the patients its a big thing happening for them.

i know not all people have the same experience , most in here are very very pleased with their surgeons.