I am almost done with all of the preliminary exams and was wondering if anyone is familiar with this surgeon. He works at the same clinic as Dr. Atul Madan. Would appreciate any feedback possible before I make my decision. Thank you!

I am in the same boat as you, except I have apprroval and a surgery date scheduled for march 31. I have dr. Madan and the surgery to be done at the Beverly Hills Surgical Cente. I have such mixed feelings about Dr. Madan and the surgery center. That is the same center that I know for sures that 2 people died and I think Dr. Madan was the surgeon for one of them. I want this lapband so bad! I am really cofused. I have emailed Dr. Madan and the surgery coordnator (Sylvia) about my concerns but have not heard back. I guess I will check a few other Doctors and see what they say. Let me know if you hear anything good or bad and I will do the same. Thanks and good luck

I am looking to get the band and I am going to one of those seminars. I was told by a few friends who got the band Dr Gee was very kind and straight forward. I have an appointment to see him in late March. They have very small scars and I know they are happy as clams losing weight. I hope he's as nice as they say he is. His staff all say he's got a perfect record, he's not being investigated by anyone and treats everyone with respect. I think he's the only one in that group that's not in the papers. My friends all tell me to get Dr Gee to do my band. I will certainly find out. Bless you all.

I know your post is a few months old....I was wondering if you were banded by Dr. Gee? I wen to the seminar and I'm scheduled to start my work up this week (sleep study & endoscopy) but while I was waiting for these appointments, I came across these posts stating these "800-get-thin" docs are bad...some are being investigated. This has scared me & I have contacted another doctors office, but don't want to start all over with someone else, since I'm under a time constraint with my insurance. I hope you get this & can respond to me!

I am looking to get the band and I am going to one of those seminars. I was told by a few friends who got the band Dr Gee was very kind and straight forward. I have an appointment to see him in late March. They have very small scars and I know they are happy as clams losing weight. I hope he's as nice as they say he is. His staff all say he's got a perfect record, he's not being investigated by anyone and treats everyone with respect. I think he's the only one in that group that's not in the papers. My friends all tell me to get Dr Gee to do my band. I will certainly find out. Bless you all.

I am looking to get the band and I am going to one of those seminars. I was told by a few friends who got the band Dr Gee was very kind and straight forward. I have an appointment to see him in late March. They have very small scars and I know they are happy as clams losing weight. I hope he's as nice as they say he is. His staff all say he's got a perfect record, he's not being investigated by anyone and treats everyone with respect. I think he's the only one in that group that's not in the papers. My friends all tell me to get Dr Gee to do my band. I will certainly find out. Bless you all.

You have to read the news story... type in "Julius Gee lap band' in yahoo and read this story...

Lap Band Company Accused of Cover Up

Paula Rojeski died September 8 following a lap band procedure that was performed at a surgical center in West Hills, California

By Scott Weber

| Thursday, Jan 19, 2012 | Updated 8:32 AM PDT

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A new lawsuit against weight-loss surgery centers connected with the 1-800-GET-THIN ad campaign alleges that executives tried to cover up mistakes that led to the death of a Lap Band patient, according to documents filed Tuesday.

More: Lawsuit Documents

Paula Rojeski died Sept. 8 following a lap band procedure that was performed at a surgical center in West Hills, California, according to the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

During the procedure, a machine that was supposed to provide Rojeski with oxygen was turned off, leaving her to breathe room air for nearly 30 minutes. In addition, Dr. Deming Chau, an anesthesiologist treating Rojeski, believed that a blood pressure cuff hooked up to Rojeski was malfunctioning when it indicated she was in distress, reads the lawsuit.

The surgeon, Dr. Julius Gee, stopped the surgery several times and asked Chau if everything was alright because Rojeski began "bucking" on the operating table and alarms on the monitors continued to go off.

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The suit also states that an IV came loose during surgery resulting in anesthesia and IV fluids draining on to the ground.

Gee completed the procedure and left the operating room but was called back by Chau, who indicated something was wrong. Gee said Rojeski didn't have a pulse an asked someone to call 911.

During the call, the lawsuit states that medical staff failed to provide "critical information" to the 911 dispatcher, including that Rojeski had been down with no pulse for more than 15 minutes.

She was transported to West Hills Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Lawyers for the weight-loss business did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

After Rojeski's death, Michael Omidi, who runs the business with his brother Julian, instructed others to remove all defective equipment before the coroner's office arrived, according to the lawsuit.

Omidi instructed Chau to "falsify" Rojeski's anesthesia record and remove the 15-minute gap before he told anyone she had stopped breathing and didn't have a pulse, the suit reads.

Further, the lawsuit alleges the company fraudulently billed patient's insurance companies and performed medically unnecessary surgical procedures including biopsies, hernia repairs, hysterectomies, and gallbladder removal.

To cut costs, the lawsuit claims surgery centers required staff to "recycle" surgical equipment and did not stock proper equipment to deal with life threatening situations.

In addition, customers who attended "free" seminars later noticed bills to their insurance companies for "medical visits," according to the lawsuit.

The coroner's office has not yet determined the cause of Rojeski's death, Ed Winter, Los Angeles County's assistant chief coroner, told the Los Angeles Times.

The lawsuit seeks damages from eight people and 13 companies which are controlled by the Omidis.

Five Southern California patients have died since 2009 following lap-band procedures at clinics affiliated with 1-800-Get-Thin. But the company cites a state report, saying that it has a significantly smaller fatality rate than hospitals that also do the surgery.

Follow NBCLA for the latest LA news, events and entertainment: Twitter: @NBCLA // Facebook: NBCLA

Posted Wednesday, Jan 18, 2012 - 6:06 PM PDT

I just called today to schedule a meeting with this company. I then went online and typed in "Julius Gee lap band" in search engine and found a horrible article about him and the cover up of a patient's death during her lap band procedure. Go online and type it yourself.

If not, here is the story....

Lap Band Company Accused of Cover Up

Paula Rojeski died September 8 following a lap band procedure that was performed at a surgical center in West Hills, California

By Scott Weber

| Thursday, Jan 19, 2012 | Updated 8:32 AM PDT

View Comments (0)

|

Email

|

Print

advertisement

A new lawsuit against weight-loss surgery centers connected with the 1-800-GET-THIN ad campaign alleges that executives tried to cover up mistakes that led to the death of a Lap Band patient, according to documents filed Tuesday.

More: Lawsuit Documents

Paula Rojeski died Sept. 8 following a lap band procedure that was performed at a surgical center in West Hills, California, according to the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

During the procedure, a machine that was supposed to provide Rojeski with oxygen was turned off, leaving her to breathe room air for nearly 30 minutes. In addition, Dr. Deming Chau, an anesthesiologist treating Rojeski, believed that a blood pressure cuff hooked up to Rojeski was malfunctioning when it indicated she was in distress, reads the lawsuit.

The surgeon, Dr. Julius Gee, stopped the surgery several times and asked Chau if everything was alright because Rojeski began "bucking" on the operating table and alarms on the monitors continued to go off.

The suit also states that an IV came loose during surgery resulting in anesthesia and IV fluids draining on to the ground.

Gee completed the procedure and left the operating room but was called back by Chau, who indicated something was wrong. Gee said Rojeski didn't have a pulse an asked someone to call 911.

During the call, the lawsuit states that medical staff failed to provide "critical information" to the 911 dispatcher, including that Rojeski had been down with no pulse for more than 15 minutes.

She was transported to West Hills Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Lawyers for the weight-loss business did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

After Rojeski's death, Michael Omidi, who runs the business with his brother Julian, instructed others to remove all defective equipment before the coroner's office arrived, according to the lawsuit.

Omidi instructed Chau to "falsify" Rojeski's anesthesia record and remove the 15-minute gap before he told anyone she had stopped breathing and didn't have a pulse, the suit reads.

Further, the lawsuit alleges the company fraudulently billed patient's insurance companies and performed medically unnecessary surgical procedures including biopsies, hernia repairs, hysterectomies, and gallbladder removal.

To cut costs, the lawsuit claims surgery centers required staff to "recycle" surgical equipment and did not stock proper equipment to deal with life threatening situations.

In addition, customers who attended "free" seminars later noticed bills to their insurance companies for "medical visits," according to the lawsuit.

The coroner's office has not yet determined the cause of Rojeski's death, Ed Winter, Los Angeles County's assistant chief coroner, told the Los Angeles Times.

The lawsuit seeks damages from eight people and 13 companies which are controlled by the Omidis.

Five Southern California patients have died since 2009 following lap-band procedures at clinics affiliated with 1-800-Get-Thin. But the company cites a state report, saying that it has a significantly smaller fatality rate than hospitals that also do the surgery.

Follow NBCLA for the latest LA news, events and entertainment: Twitter: @NBCLA // Facebook: NBCLA

Posted Wednesday, Jan 18, 2012 - 6:06 PM PDT

I read the article you posted twice and you are wrong about Dr Gee.

Well I got banded by Dr Gee in July 2011, not at the 1-800, but at another surgery center in Beverly Hills where he also works at. I am happy to say that I have lost 47lbs. and still losing, because it WORKS!

My scars are very little I can only see three of them, I've nicked my legs shaving and these are about the same size.

Dr Gee was very professional and caring. After reading your article I cannot believe the horror stories you are blaming him for. The article states that he finished the surgery. The patient died after Dr Gee was done. It seems to me Dr Chau was the one having the problems. I did not go with the 1-800 center because of the other posts online too, but to imply Dr Gee is a horrible doctor is completely wrong. I went with Dr Gee because my girlfriend got her surgery by him. I trust him more than any articles that you can cut and paste. You just have to meet him and you will see that he is a surgeon who will make you feel comfortable and safe. I know I felt safe going into surgery with him and I am very happy with the results. When I told him I was referred by my girlfiend who got banded by him, he asked if my girlfiend was happy, and I said yes. He said that's all he cares about.

I read the article you posted twice and you are wrong about Dr Gee.

Well I got banded by Dr Gee in July 2011, not at the 1-800, but at another surgery center in Beverly Hills where he also works at. I am happy to say that I have lost 47lbs. and still losing, because it WORKS!

My scars are very little I can only see three of them, I've nicked my legs shaving and these are about the same size.

Dr Gee was very professional and caring. After reading your article I cannot believe the horror stories you are blaming him for. The article states that he finished the surgery. The patient died after Dr Gee was done. It seems to me Dr Chau was the one having the problems. I did not go with the 1-800 center because of the other posts online too, but to imply Dr Gee is a horrible doctor is completely wrong. I went with Dr Gee because my girlfriend got her surgery by him. I trust him more than any articles that you can cut and paste. You just have to meet him and you will see that he is a surgeon who will make you feel comfortable and safe. I know I felt safe going into surgery with him and I am very happy with the results. When I told him I was referred by my girlfiend who got banded by him, he asked if my girlfiend was happy, and I said yes. He said that's all he cares about.

To clarify, I said it was a "horrible article about him, and not that he is a horrible doctor" if you have used that doctor and you are alive and happy, then that is great!! I am happy for you and your girlfriend! But for someone who is even thinking of using him should have the right to research and find out what really happened and why there would be such an article about him (common sense). Everyone definitely should do their research before choosing any doctor. For safety and peace with making the best decision. Good job and good luck with your continuous weight loss!