Due to finacial reasons I have asked my surgeon to sleeve me outpatient rather than inpatient. I was hoping to hear from some of you that had their surgery outpatient and see what your thoughts were.. were you okay at home after the surgery or would you have stayed in the hospital if you could have? The surgeon said I would have a drain, but only for 24 hours, he also said that I would put a blue dye in all of my liquids to assist in finding a leak if there was one. How safe am I doing this and a few hours going home? I have plenty of help at home (husband and 4 kids).

I think if it was safely done outpatient, then that is what would be routine. I certainly wouldn't be comfortable knowing what I know (I work on a surgical floor.) docs love outpatient surgery, but the sleeve isn't typically one of them. I would make sure you do A LOT of research if you find a doc who agrees to this.

I was sleeved as an outpatient at a surgical center. For me that meant a 23 hour stay from a Friday to Saturday. There were only four of us in the surgical bay and there was a TV on low, but we all pretty much just slept except for getting in some water and walking to the bathroom. The nurses were quiet and considerate and I felt well taken care of. I don't think I received less care than I would have as an inpatient. I felt okay to go home Saturday morning too. My husband took Friday and Monday off and my grandsons were home Wednesday and Thursday so I had folks there in case I needed anything. By the time I was by myself I was comfortable enough I felt I could drive if I needed to. It was a good experience for me and I hope that sharing this will help you in finding your comfort level.

I have to agree with Mrs. FullerRN. There are so many things that can go wrong post op. I do understand your concern for finances, I personally would not be comfortable with it.

Funny that you responded to my post, because I just got done responding to yours LOL My surgeon did agree to it and told me that he's done the sleeve outpatient without any issues. I am hoping to get some more responses from people that had it outpatient so they could tell me if they regreted it.

There is a very good surgeon in Los Vegas that's done several patients here his name is umbach if you do a search you will see some recent posts about experiences..

http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/87955-dr-umbach-in-las-vegas-and-cash-paying-was-awesome/page__fromsearch__1

One of many threads...

Thanks Laura-Ven! I read it and will go searching for more outpatient stories I think in one hand that my surgeon would have refused my asking for outpatient if he wasn't comfortable with it.. I'm just trying to see as much as possible that others have gone through so I have an idea if that's what I really want to do.

Be sure to check about the few hours going home.

Lynda

I am only about 20 minutes from the facility, is that what you're talking about?

Due to finacial reasons I have asked my surgeon to sleeve me outpatient rather than inpatient. I was hoping to hear from some of you that had their surgery outpatient and see what your thoughts were.. were you okay at home after the surgery or would you have stayed in the hospital if you could have? The surgeon said I would have a drain' date=' but only for 24 hours, he also said that I would put a blue dye in all of my liquids to assist in finding a leak if there was one. How safe am I doing this and a few hours going home? I have plenty of help at home (husband and 4 kids).[/quote']

If you and your dr are comfortable doint it like that. I guess if you have any type of issues then you can go back to the hospital.

Hi everyone! I got my sleeve on 7-30-13 in Las Vegas with Dr. Tom Umbach as an outpatient. Here is the rundown of the events: My surgery was scheduled for 12pm so I arrived at 10a. Completed paperwork, paid my co-pay and then answered questions with a nurse. Got in my gown, compression tights and non skid socks by 11a. Gave urine sample (for pregnancy test). Received IV and two Percocet (got fuzzy after about 45 minutes but didn't fall asleep). Waited with my husband in holding area for a few hours until I was taken to a final holding room with one other person. Note - Dr. Umbach and the nurses checked on me at least 10 times during the holding period. The Dr. apologized for the delay and I said no worries. Take your time - especially with me. Anesthesiologist introduced himself and asked if I had any allergies, questions, etc. Very nice guy - Dr. Link. Moved to surgery room at approximately 3pm. Dr. Link told me what he was doing and in 2 seconds, I was out. Surgery was an hour and another hour for recovery. I woke up and was incredibly tired and just wanted to sleep. Next I had to use the IV holder like a walker to go to the bathroom to change. It was so hard. Soon after they told me to pick a bear or moose as my bariatric buddy to use to cough on or help support my tummy (cute but I didn't really use it). They put me in a wheelchair and wheeled me out at around 5p. I was extremely tired and went right to bed, however it was difficult to sleep because I had some pain and was coming out of the anesthesia. Post Op - I took a pain pill every 4 hours until Thursday afternoon (two days) and then stopped. I started walking the next day (in my bedroom doing circles) about two sessions of 15 minutes and started drinking protein shakes and water as much as possible. The Pure Protein Chocolate shakes are packed with protein (36g) but are super sweet. I tried another power shake (Nectar Vanilla Bean Torte) with almond mike which tasted like vanilla cake mix. On Fri (three days after surgery), I had chicken broth and it was the best thing ever. I then had a sugar free jello and sugar free popsicle and later mixed chicken broth with chicken broth and vegetable soup mix I got online from Bariatric Choice (strained out the vegetable chunks). It was wonderful. I also mixed greek yogurt with Crystal light and it was great because it wasn't so sweet. Today more soup and popsicles, sugar free jello pudding and mixed protein shots with jello but haven't tasted it yet. The medical director called me today (Sat) to see how I was and said I could have unsweetened applesauce as well. BTW, I went out to eat with my family this afternoon and drank water and my soup mix from a thermal cup. I was fine and didn't eat anything from the restaurant. I feel extremely fortunate as I have not gotten sick yet. Regarding the outpatient vs inpatient, I think it's a personal choice. My doctor is in surgery twice a week and does about 10 bariatric surgeries a day so I was not concerned since that is his specialty. I hope this info is helpful in making you feel better. I am returning to work on Wed but actually felt I could have gone to work the next day....but I didn't. Good Luck!

I was sleeved on 7-16 and was down with surgery at 830 in the morning and discharged at 1pm. I had absolutely no problems and was glad not to be in the hospital. That's just me though I would rather be at home...

I am only about 20 minutes from the facility, is that what you're talking about?

Yes, sorry about that! Your post said "and a few hours going home" so I thought you lived a few hours away. I get it now. You will go home a few hours after the surgery. 20 minutes is good.

Lynda

This is a big surgery and I'd never consider having it as an outpatient, or with just a one night stay in hospital. Too much can go wrong.

I know my view is pretty conservative on this forum, but I feel that when we call this op "bariatric surgery" it seems to become a simple one. Call it "stomach cancer resection" (which can be virtually identical) and patients are treated much more conservatively (even though they often have less risk factors).

for me personally i would not do this as an outpatient. like a few have stated so much can go wrong after and i personally would rather be at the hospital. after i woke up from surgery i was very sick and throwing up for a couple hours after. i am glad they didnt ship me out. i was scared because i was throwing up blood from surgery. and it honestly freaked me out. i actually ended up staying for 4 days due to my new tummy swelling so much that i couldn't get fluids down. so i had to stay until i could pass my leak test. i was sleeved on a Monday and was discharged Thursday night. i completely understand the financial aspect of this. the hospital charged my insurance almost 72k for my stay!!! however i dont think i would of felt comfortable going home right away. also having a small complication i couldnt go home.