Mexico for a Canadian

[juney1968 2]

The aftercare is the hugest problem with going to Mexico.I live in northern Ontario and am finding no sucess in finding an aftercare facility. I was told to call swlc in Missisauga. They told me the doctoer would do a consult to see if he would take me on, fee $200, and then aftercare for the next 5 years would cost $5,000!!! I said "oh, your punishing people who save money by going out of country to get banded" she said "no, not really" Can you believe this! Let's face it there is really no other reason for this. You could sign a waiver and that could be that, but no we should be punished. How dare we try to save some money by saving our lives sooner. It is absurd! This shouldn't be tolerated. What can we do?, us passive Canadians will just take it...as usual.

[catzintj 1]

if it were me, and i could get banded in canada . i would not want to travel so far . but, i did get my band in mexico and i have only good things to say about my experiences there..... so if you are willing to go that far, then you can find great doctors........... also you can get botox cheap!!!!! i like to get it all when im down there. botox. fills, sun and fun.

[Doddie63 6]

juney: I understand your frustration at not getting after care but at the same time you have to realize that banding is a business. The surgeons make their money on the surgery and the after care is included in the consult fee. Also, doctors do not like taking on patients they have not put the band on due to the warrantee coverage of the band. I had my band in Toronto and even then I found it next to impossible to get after care. I was finally taken on by Dr. Woodhead on a referral from Dr. Yau who knew each other.

There are various opinions out there about the pros and cons of going out of country but seriously are you really saving money. If you go to the TLBC for instance you get tremendous support and the fills are free. The SWLC provides support and fills as well.

The Mexican Hospitals have no connect with you after the fact unless you fly down to them. Where is the saving?

[juney1968 2]

hey doddie, here is my logic. Right now I have $8000 to go get the band. I'm hoping that in a few months I'll have the dough to fly to mexico and get my fill, or if I have to Michigan is looking like a option. I do not have $19,000 for the band in Ontario. Thats just the facts for me as I'm sure they are for lots of us looking to get banded.

[Kwalla_girl 0]

I think I agree with Andrew in that if there is no follow up care in your area, it doesn't really make a difference btw Canada US or Mexico. You are usually talking about the same travel distance. If however you do have a clinic available in your area it would still be my first choice. I live in Toronto, and was banded at TLBC, and what I appreciate most is not the aftercare, or the free fills, but the support groups available to me. But what good is the lifetime follow-up care if you live in BC or Alberta. I think it's cheeper to travel to Mexico than Toronto.

That said I'll say that I was really tight a few months ago. Got my fill on a Friday and by the end of the day I couldn't even swallow my saliva and I kept throwing up. I went to Scarborough Hospital (where they actually do LapBand surgeries) and I waited 7 hours for a defill. By that point I didn't care what I had to do US, Mexico, anything would have been better than the waiting. So surgery in Canada is not the best choice for everyone. I do think that is good to be informed of the worst case scenario and make an informed decision. All the difficulties listed here are valid, have happened before and could potentially happen again. Make sure you make a decision you can live with and Good Luck!

[Doddie63 6]

I wish you all the best in your journey. You can only decide what is best for you. I and others offer up negatives to inspire an individual to see all sides. That usually gets the best decision in the end for the individual. I certainly am not against going out of country as long as it meets your needs. I unfortuantely did not have the benefit of someone telling me about after care and for about six months I went thru a lot of emotional distress. Hindsight is wonderful. If I had known about the negatives of after care, my decision may have been different. Again God speed you in your journey. Doddie

[Donna 0]

You really can't blame doctors here for not wanting to service patients who have surgery with another clinic. This is a business pure and simple. Also the doctors have malpractice insurance that has strict rules so of course it is not cut and dry. If for example the Mexican doctors are wanting Canadian patients let them provide the aftercare support as they are making the bucks.

[jane.c 0]

The aftercare is the hugest problem with going to Mexico.I live in northern Ontario and am finding no sucess in finding an aftercare facility. I was told to call swlc in Missisauga. They told me the doctoer would do a consult to see if he would take me on, fee $200, and then aftercare for the next 5 years would cost $5,000!!! I said "oh, your punishing people who save money by going out of country to get banded" she said "no, not really" Can you believe this! Let's face it there is really no other reason for this. You could sign a waiver and that could be that, but no we should be punished. How dare we try to save some money by saving our lives sooner. It is absurd! This shouldn't be tolerated. What can we do?, us passive Canadians will just take it...as usual.

You have to remember that for the money you are getting a lot more than just fills. They are providing you with the full service of the clinic whether you choose to use it or not. It's not just the fills that you are receiving. They have a support forum for their patients, they have trained doctors/nurses all over the country to give us fills/defills should we need them, you have a dietitian available to you if you require that, they have web seminars that feature people from many different areas that will aid us for our journey with weight loss. You have doctors available for emergencies 24 hours per day. It might sound like a lot of money but when we choose to pay $16000 to be banded in Ontario, we are not just getting the surgery for that price. They will actually break it down for you as to the cost of the band, the cost of surgery and the cost of follow up so in essence the $5000 they are asking you for, is the same $5000 that the rest of us are paying for in that $16000 for follow up. I also live in Northern Ontario and will have to travel for fills unless they find someone close to me to do them. I think the closest person they have to me is in North Bay but that's still over 4 hours away.

[DixyChixy1966 0]

JAC, I live just outside of Calgary and am considering Dr. Ortiz...what can you tell me about the aftercare available here? I have been given the name of Dr. Phillip Mitchell for fills - is this who you go to? After reading some of the posts I am concerned about the level of aftercare available to us Calgarians - any info you can provide would be awesome.

Also, you mention we can claim the surgery on AHC? Can you tell me anything about this?

Thanks so very much for your answers!

[Devana 0]

After about a year of research, I got banded in Mexico in June 06. At the time the cost, even with flights, was less than half of what I would have paid here in BC.

I can still reach the surgeon directly at any time by phone, even on Sundays and holidays. I have a band surgeon here in BC who does my fills and if he wasn't available, I would have no problem going to Washington. Even with paying for my handful of fills I'm not anywhere near paying what I would have had I had it done here.

I have done an emergency unfill on a friend. She was banded in BC, but we live too far away from her surgeon to have waited over the weekend to have it done by him. So in that respect, she didn't have much advantage over me by being banded here. The statistics for serious band problems are really small. If I was one of the 3% of people who develop an erosion or slippage, I would just get myself back down to Mexico. And if it was a dire emergency, I know I would not be refused treatment at my local hospital. I was not willing to pay double for the ability to be treated locally in the very remote chance I had a dire emergency.

I travel to the US regularly for seminars and always purchase travel insurance, and I make sure it is of the type that doesn't require me to pay anything up front.

Medical mistakes can be made anywhere. My son in crippled due to mistakes and negligence that happened right here in the BC hospital system. And it's ongoing. I walk this tightrope between gently kicking ass and not pissing them off so much that my son won't get proper treatment.

I and several of my friends, in jest, call ourselves the "Self Improvement Club". Each of us has had multiple procedures done in Mexico and whether it be banding, dental work or cosmetic surgery, we're all very happy with the experiences and results.

My Muslim friend had a saying that I love: Trust in Allah but tether your camel first. If you want to go to Mexico, do your research and go for it. Have faith and don't let fear get in your way.

Bear in mind that I'm an old hippy and I routinely still thumb my nose at the conventional way of doing things.

[DixyChixy1966 0]

Thanks so much for all of the information everyone! I can't wait to become a full-fledged "bandster" myself!

I am worried about the gas pain afterward and travelling home such a long distance - any advice or words of comfort would be greatly appreciated on this topic!

Thanks again everyone!

[JAC 1]

The gas pains were very minor following the surgery. I have recently had conversations with various people about how the surgery is performed. In order to place the band best, the surgery is performed while you are in an upright position. The more upright you are, the more gas they have to fill you with in order to perform the surgery. Dr. Ortiz does not perform the surgery on patients in a full upright position, therefore, he uses a lot less gas. He also does not close you with any stitches or staples. I found I had very little bruising and gas compared to what many of the patients complain about having had their procedures in Canada. I have had previous gallbladder surgery, so I know the gas pain from that, and this surgery was very minor.

I see Dr. Descoteaux for my fills. I like seeing him and so far I don't know anyone who has had problems from too aggressive of a fill from him. Dr. Mitchell can be fairly aggressive and I have known patients who have had to go to emergency for a de-fill. Dr. Mitchell also charges the most money for a fill. Dr. Botha is a family doctor who has been trained to do fills as well. There are a few choices, plus I think a new private clinic will be opening up in the Calgary area.

I hope you have a great experience.

Julie

Nov 6/06

Dr. Ortiz

258/190/158

[DixyChixy1966 0]

Very interesting...thank you so much. I am really pretty much decided on Dr. Ortiz but just doing some final research. I am curious about Dr. Rodriguez in Monterray - what made you ultimately choose Dr. Ortiz?

[JAC 1]

Hello everyon

Thank You everyone for both voicing their fears and confidences in their own experinces of getting banded, where ever it was done, and especially driving the point home about aftercare, having that set up before you go thru with the procedure.

1) what does Dr. Ortiz (mexico) require from the patient (me) medical records? for this procedure to happen?.

2) why are so few Dr.'s trained in this feild this far out west?. SK, AB. BC?

3) how do I approach my Dr. about banding? especially when I have a Dr's name for posibble referral?

I guess in my situation I want to keep it private, tell no one family or friends, unless it was/is serious. Also, for the cost? to me it doesn't matter, what does matter is my long term health and how soon I want this to happen and how to get it started. Since I live in Alberta, waiting might either be on my side or against me. BC could be handy because of a certain family member who had a bypass 12 yrs ago,(it didn't work that well for her), she and I have talked and she's supportive. Or go all out and go to Ontario...

You have all given me much to consider. I will talk on Friday with my diabetic team and then a new young female Dr in my town's office on Monday. I've been watching on TLC "Big Medicine" that father/son Dr. team that does many bands and bypasses "LAP" style. I can see what its all about and feel sure of the procedure. All I need to do is decide. Nuts ...if I'm willing to get tattooed and be coloured for life then getting "banded" is also just as life changing.

thank you

thea

Thea,

I was banded by Dr. Ortiz in November 2006. I see Dr. Descoteaux in Calgary for fills. Other fill doctors in Calgary include Dr. Mitchell and Dr. Botha. I have been more than happy with the after care I have received. When I spoke with my family doctor about it he did not know a lot about it, but he did say that losing weight was so important to my long-term health. To me it really didn't matter if my family doctor knew a lot about the band because realistically you get far more after care from the on-line support groups than from the surgeon or your family doctor.

Our Calgary Lapbanders group tries to get together in person about every 6 weeks. It is great to just meet other people who are sharing the same journey. Check us out at Yahoo Groups if you have not already joined.

I have recommended to many people to go to Dr. Ortiz and I would not hesitate to send anyone else or for me to go again. He also has a great network of other doctors (plastic surgeons, etc.) in case you every get to the point where you want other surgeries. His skills are awesome and the clinic is so clean, new and relaxing. Best of luck with your decision and let me know if you have other questions.

Julie

Nov 6/06

Dr. Ortiz

258/190/158

[Doddie63 6]

I was banded in Canada and had no gas pains whatsoever. In fact I had no problems whatsoever. Also, I was laying down during surgery. Would you please tell us how you know the Canadian doctors are sitting patients up and that we have more gas pains than out of country patients? I am not aware of such a statistic. doddie