Hi everyone,

I am trying to choose a Lap Band Dr. in either Monterey or Tijuana Mexico. I am fluent in Spanish, there for I do not need to pay extra for a patient facilitator. Can anyone refer me to a doctor that you know who gives a discount for not using this service? If you prefer to e-mail me and let me know how much you save, I will appreciate it.

Thank you,

Dan

Dan, there are several Bandsters here who have dealt directly w/ their Mexican drs. Please "Search" for specific drs. that you have in mind. Please do your research before banding, including your after-care. A well-informed patient has a better chance of being a successful Bandster. Some are finding it very difficult to get an American dr. to take them on. Please check directly with any drs. that you plan on working with - to avoid any unpleasant surprises. Best of luck to you!

Thank you for the advice Marie. Believe me when I tell you that I have been searching and asking questions on several doctors. I have narrow the search to Dr. Rumbaut, Dr. Kuri, Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Rodriguez in Monterey Mexico. I will sure start calling these doctors soon but I also wanted to know if anyone else has taken this route and been successful.

Dan

I used Dr. Ortiz and have been very successful. I had surgery April 6th 2004 and I have lost 52.75 lbs as of this morning. I also live in Southern California and going back to Tj for my aftercare has been very easy for me. I'm only 1.5hours from the border. I have had 2 fills and no problems, nor regrets I love my band!

Dr. Ortiz & Martinez and the entire staff of Obesity Control Center have satisfied my every need.

Best of Luck to you.

Since you live in California, it would probably be easier for you to get to Tijuana.

When I was researching, I spoke with Dr. Rumbaut. He speaks English as well as I do (and I also speak Spanish fluently) and I was able to speak to him directly, but he still uses a patient coordinator. Since I eventually decided to have my surgery in Houston, I did not realize that one pays extra for the coordinator. Are you sure that is the case?

Nancy

I could be wrong, but I don't think there's a way to bypass the patient coordinator. I don't think they are there for the folks that don't speak spanish... I think mostly they are there so that the surgeons can operate and not need to worry about returning phone calls and answering questions and whatnot. Although I will say that once my surgery was schedule, Dr. Rumbaut called me personally to make sure that I didn't have any questions. These doctors amaze me with the time they take for EACH patient. Dr. Kuri does my fills (I live in southern california and can drive to TJ). Both of them are really amazing guys, and I recommend either one.

Nancy,

I decided to ask this question because I notice one doctor had two different web sites. One quoted the surgery higher than the other and at this point I send the doctor an e-mail. Well to my surprise, the doctor in Monterey answered the e-mail and quoted me about $1000 less than his two sites. The answer he gave me was that the patient facilitators in the US received a commission and maintained the web pages. I could be wrong about other doctors, but it does not hurt to ask around.