Dr. Alvarez vs Dr. Ariel Ortiz

[cookies-and-cream 1]

Hi All.

trying to decide between the two. Both have great online presense, Dr. Ortiz has a celebrity status (but i've read in older threads that he is not the one actually performing the surgery, his assistant does it instead) and Dr. Ortiz is roughly $2000 cheaper than Dr. Alvarez. Any thoughts or comments ? They gave me a very vague answer as to complications resolutions after surgery as they apparently never had one. Not that reassuring, I am afraid.

thank you all in advance.

[anniemay 150]

I have heard stories about complications from both - they may not give you this information because once the patient leaves there is no followup from their perspective.  Just do your research - I didn't go to Mexico but the one thing I would want to ask is how many procedures they perform daily....more is not better!

[lifeislikeaboxofchocolates 12]

Who gives a **** about "Celebrity Status." It's not like the celebrities go around advertising who did their surgery. A good surgeon does his best no matter who you are. Additionally, just because they can act, does not mean they make good decisions. But how many  Redcarpet Walkers have had bariatric surgery??  Oh yeah, Tom Cruis used to weigh 400 lbs and had 4 chins......  

 

I picked Alvarez ....

Edited March 5, 2014 by lifeislikeaboxofchocolates

[Kindle 8,667]

I went with Dr. Ortiz and OCC. In my decision, I really ended up going with what I thought was the best surgical "team". At OCC, I got great care and personal attention from the entire staff....the nutritionist, the office manager, the nurses, Dr. Jimenez (the cardiologist who does all the preop stuff) and Dr. So ( the followup doctor who does the barium swallow fluoroscopy and removes your drain). Both Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Martinez perform the sleeve surgery as a team. And yes, Dr. Ortiz has a "celebrity" status, and I did find him quite arrogant, but that doesn't mean he's not an excellent surgeon. They only do 5 surgeries/day and their complication rate (less than 0.1%) is monitored and verified by the US Surgical Review Corporation.

As for followup, of course you are not going to get the hands on personal attention like you would from a local surgeon. A serious complication would probably send you to the ER and looking for a local surgeon. But OCC does send you weekly email surveys and indicate that you should contact them by phone if you are having any issues. The nutritionist has answered my questions promptly. I actually ended up with a Clostridial infection in my colon 5 weeks after surgery from antibiotics I had to take for a tooth infection. Dr. So from OCC was really good about corresponding with my PCP to come up with a treatment plan that would be compatible with my new sleeve.

Of course I can only give you one side of the argument, and I'm sure Dr. Alvarez has a lot of happy patients as well. Just keep doing your research and choose the surgeon and facility that you feel most comfortable with.

[cookies-and-cream 1]

thank you all for replies. The more I research my top three candidates, the more I lean to Dr. Aceves, actually

[awold0 246]

thank you all for replies. The more I research my top three candidates, the more I lean to Dr. Aceves, actually

 

I have a friend that insurance does not cover. I have question on mexico self pay. So do they have any payment plan set up or is 100 percent out off pocket and have to pay all at once.

[tami88 73]

I was torn as well. I ended up choosing Dr. Ortiz at the OCC.

The reason why was because of all of his other patients I connected/talked with. Before my surgery I talked with over 75 ppl who went to the OCC.

My experience was wonderful. I did not find him to be arrogant at all. I found the staff to be attentive and had excellent care.

I keep in touch with others who had the surgery done on the same day as I did. We all wish we had this done sooner.

There are many surgeons as you know out there. Take your time and pick the one that you feel the most happy about.

[slvrsax 301]

I had my surgery in December with Dr. Ariel Ortiz.  I second everything Kindle said.  The care I received was excellent.  I had a problem because of my own anatomy.  The surgical team at OCC identified an issue that my doctor here at home missed entirely.  The problem was fixed with a second minor procedure the day after my sleeve surgery.  I couldn't be happier with my outcome.  OCC really went the extra mile and I am very grateful for that!  They asked us to extend our stay by one day to make sure I was recovering enough to go home, which I totally appreciated.  Dr. So told me that my situation occurs in about 1% of patients so it is not common. 

 

I would whole heartedly recommend Dr. Ariel Ortiz and his entire team.