Repost from OH--

I wasn't being rude or trying to rain on her parade--just wanted her to come check out this site. Here is her post:

"I have been letting everyone know that I am a bit nervous about my upcoming surgery and I appreciate everyones advice and words of encouragement. However, today someone sent me the following email through this site that I found offensive.

"Stacy I don't mean to scare you but I strongly suggest NOT having surgery in MX; there have been several women on lapbandtalk.com with band erosions and all had their surgery with mx doctors; 1 or 2 of the erosions were Dr. Ortiz's patients. Erosion is a serious complication requiring removal of the band.

Good luck"

First of all, erosion happens. It even happens to patients in the US. My doctor is a leading world expert in Lap Band. He has trained MANY American doctors and was taught himself by the inventor of the Band Dr. Belachew. When a Doctor performs over 3000 procedures, there are bound to be some erosions.

I guess I am just aggrivated because I have enough going through my head right now, like not gaining any more weight and I feel that an email trying to scare me about my doctor was very rude.

Sorry, I am just venting...."

Stacy

p.s. For anyone doubting Dr. Ortizs expertise...order his book. www.drarielortiz.com He will also be appearing on Dateline NBC soon doing a piece on the Lap Band.

2 cases of TB just surfaced in Houston ISD.

My uncle gave me the new feb 2006 consumer reports. I wish i could cut and paste it.

what could we offer your to get you to type it in? not a cookie?... hmm. how about this...:faint: :clap2: :help: :confused:

or, oftentimes if you buy the magazine, they give you a code on the masthead page where you are able to access the online version during that month... any chance with that? :decision: :sleep :lalala: :roll:

I think you are a bit naive. First I was a US critical care nurse for 25 years. I had surgery with Dr. Rumbaut. The Monterey hospital was just as "clean "as as a US hospital. Yes,its true that your ability to sue in Mexico is about zero. But, I have news for you the chance of you proving you got a staph infection in a US hospital and be able to get compensation for it is about zero. These sites are valuable for these reasons including many others. If there were alot of infections with one doctor or one hospital you would hear about it. The infection rate is no higher in Mexico than in the US. Probably less in Mexico, because they strive to keep a good reputation for repeat business, they have been doing the band alot longer, and their expertise for at least 3 of these Mexican docs is superior to if not better than 95% of US band surgeons at least at this time. Don't be snowed by the looks in the reception area, look for reputation. joanne in seattle

Or at least sum up a few points that have to do with this convo until we can all read it word for word?

Amy

For those who implied I am mean/bigoted: name-calling and launching personal attacks at someone who disagrees with you is bigoted/intolerant (and pc)

Also: one exception does not disprove the entire rule or objective facts, for that matter. TB and Hep A orginate in open sewers, this is a fact.

I did what I thought was right, based on what I am learning from this site, and BTW, no one on OH thought I was a meanie.

I am upset by the general demoralization I sense on this board; I hate to see new bandsters thinking "Maybe my wonderful tool isn't meant to last forever" when we know that not to be the case.

shouldn't matter who HAS the disease, what counts is the vector(s)

I think we can safely say that generalizations are not helpful, on all sorts of levels. And I hope we can all think carefully about our posts so we don't get into personal-attack territory.

I'm done with this thread. My standpoint is pretty easily summed up in a few points.

Don't email people. State your opinions and facts on the board. Emailing is rude and invasive.

Making a blanket statement about a country is pretty hinky, but it is your right to do so. So don't have a surgery in Mexico. But if someone thinks differently there should be no problem on your side.

When you want to state "facts" about erosion rates in mexico, other countries, and american doctors, make sure they are hard facts. Blanket statements suchs as yours about mexico having more erosions due to surgical technique are silly.

Thanks all for the discussion. Heated topics can be fun!

Amy

Well if anyone sent me an unsolicited anonymous e-mail before I was having surgery, I would take it just as an earlier poster said, as a personal attack.

I welcome open, two way dialogue. I shrink away from one-sided attack. Maybe the comment was well-intended but method of delivery led the recipient to be upset.

The recipient of an unsolicited comment has (in my opinion) every right to feel however they wish. The sender of the unsolicited comment should fully realise that we can't always control how someone takes a comment, but we can control how we deliver it. If she was upset, let's all acknowledge that whereas we understand you didn't mean to be offensive - it does seem disturbing that you keep stressing your intent made you right, rather that acknowledging the recipient's feelings. That seems a bit insensitive. It's fine you meant to be helpful but if she's distressed, just accept that she took it differently rather than reminding us how many other people didn't find it offensive to them. I guess not, it wasn't us who got the e-mail. Her reaction might be better understood were we to put ourselves in her shoes.

She didn't ask you to send it. It's unfortunate that she didn't react as you'd hoped - but we should try to imagine ourselves in that position. If someone had done something like that to us before our surgeries, we might also react emotionally. (True enough, some of us have faced people trying to discourage us right here at home before we had surgeries, and hopefully we all had the strength of our convictions to continue doing what was right.)

So no matter what - even if I had good intentions I'd be more understanding that the recipient for whatever reasons was distressed, and would be a tad more apologetic to her feelings (even if I knew my intent was good.)

As we near the MLK holiday here in the 'States, I guess I try to reflect on tolerance a bit more - a lesson that's easy for me and many of us to forget.

Happy Band Journeys To All,

Sho

Just my two cents worth....I had my surgery with Dr. Ortiz and I saw that every instrument they used on me was brand new out of the package. And....there was no open window anywhere in the surgical center...there was a window in the OR...but nothing that was open.

Ok, guys, email is NOT unsolicited. When you signed up for this message board, and presumably others, you gave your email address and adjusted your settings to reflect whether or not to accept emails from other users.

Publishing an email address makes any mail sent thereto solicited.

Anca, come now. If I leave my front door unlocked, I am not soliciting Jehovas witnesses to enter my home unannounced for tea. The SAME PRINCIPLE APPLIES HERE.

Internet conduct suggests that it is polite to ASK permission to contact some one privately. It is absurd to suggest that this woman solicited melati's email.

I dont know if it is leagle to cut and past from consumer reports. The artical is online under health & fitness. If you are a member of consumer reports on-line then you can search surgery and up pops 2-06 artical of bipass and lapband

Thanks, Matt.

As for Anca, your argument, as Kira M notes, is a tad off-base. Sorry, but just because I signed up for LBT or whatever website, doesn't mean it's the same thing to write me directly, as it is to start an actual thread as to the merits of going (or not) to Mexico for surgery.

I think if a person who has a beef with something and doesn't have the nerve to put it out there and take the criticism they may or may not get (deserved or not), then they are being weak and maybe aren't convinced of their own argument (or they feel, they can get away with saying something in a private, unsolicited message, that they most likely couldn't in a public forum). Undoubtedly, melati MAY have had "good intentions" for the message s/he sent, however, it's still over the line to push an unsolicited, private message onto an unsuspecting person who again, is making a personal decision about their health and life.

Here's my point: we are here to discuss, for better or worse, anything we feel we need to about the band and life with the band. I don't personally believe we are here to bash one another, nor to give whole-hearted support to things we might not agree with, but that's the beauty of this board, we can agree, disagree, chat, stay silent, whatever. I just think, like I said before, a little compassion and respect go a long, LONG way with most people...

Here's hoping we can all give compassion and respect a try.

PS -- before it comes up, yes, the person receiving the message from melati could have just deleted it, but let's remember how many of us would read it, knowing it's from the support group we belong to, and how many of us WOULD have taken it personal... just a thought.

BTW most of the TB cases in the U.S. are in the illegal population, who are obviously not tested before entering this country.

Omg! Well, I think this takes me out of this whole conversation. You are being an idiot now and I am just not going to give you any more satisfaction of my well educated time.