Just want to know how your experience went and if you would recommend either one of them..

Thanks

Hello Fifiliga,

The best way to reach me is 310-855-8058...

Thanks,

Dr. Feiz

Hi Dr. Feiz,

I know you gave me your # to reach you but I forgot to jot it down. If possible can I get your # again? I really want to start this as soon as possible. Thanks.

Dr. Michael Feiz has nor his office has NOT lived up to one promise to me!!

They've screwed up all my paperwork, would not communicate with me, I had to track down and make some of the pre op appointments myself, and now they/he are refusing to respond to me and make good on the unnecessary bills I have related to pre op procedures because they failed to submit my insurance paperwork in full, nor respond to my insurance demand for more information. Even though this is something I was told they would do in this very case, all prior to making the first pre op appointment.

It's been 8 months now.

I am not disputing his skills as a surgeon, but I would highly recommend NOT dealing with Dr. Feiz nor any doctor from Beverly Hills Physicians lest you get the same treatment I have, the stress, inconvenience and headaches are NOT worth it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Dr. Michael Feiz has nor his office has NOT lived up to one promise to me!!

They've screwed up all my paperwork, would not communicate with me, I had to track down and make some of the pre op appointments myself, and now they/he are refusing to respond to me and make good on the unnecessary bills I have related to pre op procedures because they failed to submit my insurance paperwork in full, nor respond to my insurance demand for more information. Even though this is something I was told they would do in this very case, all prior to making the first pre op appointment.

It's been 8 months now.

I am not disputing his skills as a surgeon, but I would highly recommend NOT dealing with Dr. Feiz nor any doctor from Beverly Hills Physicians lest you get the same treatment I have, the stress, inconvenience and headaches are NOT worth it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

You really got me worried now :cool:

I am scheduled to have surgery by Dr. Feiz. I have to say that I am truly convinced that he is a great Dr and genuinely cares about his patients.

The only negative experiences I had were with one of his assistants. From now on I will only be dealing with Rebecca. She is doing an excellent job and is on top of her tasks. I have a much better feeling about this whole thing now.

In your last post you mentioned that you were scheduled for upper Gi before you even got your insurance approval. I got the same information by one of his assistants but asked him personally and he said to send in the Insurance paperwork first. I assume that the insurance did not cover your upper GI?

My surgery will take place at Cedars, anyone had the operation there? Did they make you stay for the night or released you the same day?

Thanks for sharing.

Dear SoCal,

I’m sorry for your inconvenience and frustration. However, I cannot take responsibility for the difficulties posed by insurance companies in authorizing Bariatric Surgeries. Both my staff and I, have been, and are committed to assist all of our patients in attaining authorizations from insurance companies.

As a safe surgeon I do not cut corners in attaining the necessary pre-operative studies and medical clearances necessary for a safe surgery. These procedures are performed by independent physicians associated with my office; however, they are not under my employ.

I recommend upper GI endoscopy to check the inside lining of the stomach for ulcers and possible polyps or cancers. Additionally I look for a possible Hiatal Hernia, which I repair at the time of surgery. This procedure is fully covered under insurance companies apart for deductibles and copayments. As for my services, I have not billed you, or your insurance company for any charges. I cannot be held responsible for your copayments or deductibles for services provided by other healthcare providers.

Again, I am sorry for the frustration that you have endured. If there is anything I can do to assist you in getting authorized for this procedure please contact me.

Thank you and I wish you peace and health in the future.

Dr. Feiz

I did not have My surgery by Dr. Feiz, however I did have it at Cedars.

It was an awful experience, POST surgery.

I WOULD NOT recommend that anyone utilize Cedars for their surgery.

I do not know anything about Dr. Feiz, but if he is affiliated with their bariatric center, I would be highly suspicious of his ability to perform quality work.

I did spend one night at Cedars. The care was relatively good that day/night. Later on, when complications set in, I spent over a week there. I was not impressed with the care I received at that point. I think they would have preferred that I had expired, and kept my mouth shut.

Again....that was ONLY my experience, but I know a few auto mechanics would have done a better job with my Lap Band than Cedars did.

HH

I did not have My surgery by Dr. Feiz, however I did have it at Cedars.

It was an awful experience, POST surgery.

I WOULD NOT recommend that anyone utilize Cedars for their surgery.

I do not know anything about Dr. Feiz, but if he is affiliated with their bariatric center, I would be highly suspicious of his ability to perform quality work.

I did spend one night at Cedars. The care was relatively good that day/night. Later on, when complications set in, I spent over a week there. I was not impressed with the care I received at that point. I think they would have preferred that I had expired, and kept my mouth shut.

Again....that was ONLY my experience, but I know a few auto mechanics would have done a better job with my Lap Band than Cedars did.

HH

Sorry to hear that you had such a negative experience with your Dr, whom I do not know anything about and most likely never will. I read your other posts about your surgery in other threads.

I am glad to hear that you had a positive experience with Cedars stuff (aside from your follow up surgeries).

I am about to have surgery at Cedars, Dr. Feiz is my Dr. and I have no doubt in my mind that he is one of the most qualified and caring surgeons in my area. As far as I know he is not affiliated with Cedars bariatric department, but even if he was, I would still use him. I am in touch with several of his post-op patients and they all praise him highly.

I did my research before I selected him as my surgeon and I am aware that there are risks associated with any surgery that I have to life with.

But in all candor, this is the last thing I want to think about... I thrive off positive energies and I know, deep inside of me, that all will be good. And I would like to keep it that way and do not want to worry about what could happen while the chances are very slim.

Slim... just got a whole new meaning :cool:

Thanks for your answer, I assume that I have to stay at the hospital for one night as well.

Hi, Stella;

One of things I have learned during my years of involvement with the WLS "industry" is that you really don't actually know what a surgeon is "made of" , good or bad, until something goes WRONG.

I very often see people here on LBT giving high praises to their surgeon when everything goes well. Which is fine, I'm always hopeful that people's experiences DO go very well and that they have the outcome they desire. And the reality is that MOST surgeries do go fine, and I am certain that yours will, as well. But the fact is that there are some BAD people out there that are slicing into us, and you're really not going to find out WHO they are until it happens to you. I found out, and it wasn't fun.

As I said, I am unfamilar with your particular surgeon, and I'm hoping that he is NOT a part of the Cedars-Sinai "structure" and that he is only "renting space" there as a Surgeon. I will tell you that not only was my surgeon a hack, but the entire Bariatric group was arrogant and difficult to deal with. And when the problems started, the hospital Administration was like a big concrete wall.

So, I'll stand by MY experience (and it was only MY experience) that this is an organization you do NOT want to have poking around inside you.

Now, having said that, I WILL say that the overnight stay was pretty nice. I liked the private rooms, and they served this really nice "italian ice " kind of stuff that I really liked. Except when i asked the orderly if I could have another one, and she snapped " That's not what I DO!". But, that could happen anywhere.

I do NOT like to offer negativity to you preceding your surgery. However, I don't think that a little reality would hurt, and what I have said WAS the reality of at least ONE patient at that particular facility....me.:cool:

I do wish you the best of luck, and please let us all know how the entire process goes for you!

HH

I respectfully have to disagree with you. First off all I do believe that no Doctor in their sane mind would deliberately hurt another human being or intentionally install a Lap band the wrong way.

What happened to you is a rare exception and I am not in the position to judge you or your Doctor because I only know your side of the story. I am very careful with the information that I read in forums.

At any rate, please do not take my candid words as a sign of disrespect or insult, I am just being honest.

When I researched lapbanding I was so cautious about the entire procedure that I never thought I would actually find someone that I could really trust let alone agree to the procedure.

I am not some naive little teenager that is SOLD a surgery, I am a highly educated woman that lived in several countries and cities and therefore carries suitcases full of life- experiences with her anywhere she goes. What I am trying to say is that I appreciate your concern and your advice but I truly believe that I can make an educated decision and distinguish between a money hungry crook and an honest, genuinely caring professional.

Again, I do not mean to offend you. As someone that searches for "Los Angeles" and "Cedars" I had to read at least 15 to 30 of your very detailed posts in this forum.

I am sorry for you, I feel bad what happened to you and I wish you had a great experience like many other users on this board had. Please understand where I am coming from. I am a new user on this board and I am here to absorb the positive energy and spirit from positive people. I did not come here to be lectured about unethical or incompetent Doctors.

I have arrived at a point in my life where I do not need to have EVERYTHING under control, I can very well live with the uncertainties of life itself and rather focus on the positive things and positive outcomes than to waste my time and life with worrying and negative thoughts.

When something should go wrong I will deal with it with the same positive outlook.

You really need to know how down lifting your posts are, especially for someone that is new here and was (until a couple of hours ago) very much looking forward to the journey she is about to embark on.

I have to excuse myself now and have to take a very long shower; this negativity was just too much.

Again, no disrespect intended... we just seem to be VERY different people and I don’t think lap-band-forum-life is the kind of support that will do me any good.

Wishing you all the best.

Dear SoCal,

I’m sorry for your inconvenience and frustration. However, I cannot take responsibility for the difficulties posed by insurance companies in authorizing Bariatric Surgeries. Both my staff and I, have been, and are committed to assist all of our patients in attaining authorizations from insurance companies.

As a safe surgeon I do not cut corners in attaining the necessary pre-operative studies and medical clearances necessary for a safe surgery. These procedures are performed by independent physicians associated with my office; however, they are not under my employ.

I recommend upper GI endoscopy to check the inside lining of the stomach for ulcers and possible polyps or cancers. Additionally I look for a possible Hiatal Hernia, which I repair at the time of surgery. This procedure is fully covered under insurance companies apart for deductibles and copayments. As for my services, I have not billed you, or your insurance company for any charges. I cannot be held responsible for your copayments or deductibles for services provided by other healthcare providers.

Again, I am sorry for the frustration that you have endured. If there is anything I can do to assist you in getting authorized for this procedure please contact me.

Thank you and I wish you peace and health in the future.

Dr. Feiz

My problems had nothing to do w/ my insurance being unreasonable in giving approvals.

It had everything to do with your staff not submitting the proper and full required paperwork, nor even bothering to follow up when then sent you a letter requiring the additional infomation that was neglected to be sent in orginally (i.e you didn't send them the psych eval, other requirements).

My insurance gave your staff another 60 days to respond after that you still failed to do anything.

It was only after months of failing to respond from your office and staff that my insurance declined the surgery.

You have my certified letters along with all the documentation Dr. Feiz.

Please just do what your office promised me over 8 months ago so I can get out of your hair.

Thanks

I respectfully have to disagree with you. First off all I do believe that no Doctor in their sane mind would deliberately hurt another human being or intentionally install a Lap band the wrong way.

What happened to you is a rare exception and I am not in the position to judge you or your Doctor because I only know your side of the story. I am very careful with the information that I read in forums.

At any rate, please do not take my candid words as a sign of disrespect or insult, I am just being honest.

When I researched lapbanding I was so cautious about the entire procedure that I never thought I would actually find someone that I could really trust let alone agree to the procedure.

I am not some naive little teenager that is SOLD a surgery, I am a highly educated woman that lived in several countries and cities and therefore carries suitcases full of life- experiences with her anywhere she goes. What I am trying to say is that I appreciate your concern and your advice but I truly believe that I can make an educated decision and distinguish between a money hungry crook and an honest, genuinely caring professional.

Again, I do not mean to offend you. As someone that searches for "Los Angeles" and "Cedars" I had to read at least 15 to 30 of your very detailed posts in this forum.

I am sorry for you, I feel bad what happened to you and I wish you had a great experience like many other users on this board had. Please understand where I am coming from. I am a new user on this board and I am here to absorb the positive energy and spirit from positive people. I did not come here to be lectured about unethical or incompetent Doctors.

I have arrived at a point in my life where I do not need to have EVERYTHING under control, I can very well live with the uncertainties of life itself and rather focus on the positive things and positive outcomes than to waste my time and life with worrying and negative thoughts.

When something should go wrong I will deal with it with the same positive outlook.

You really need to know how down lifting your posts are, especially for someone that is new here and was (until a couple of hours ago) very much looking forward to the journey she is about to embark on.

I have to excuse myself now and have to take a very long shower; this negativity was just too much.

Again, no disrespect intended... we just seem to be VERY different people and I don’t think lap-band-forum-life is the kind of support that will do me any good.

Wishing you all the best.

“I respectfully have to disagree with you. “

As many people do.

“First off all I do believe that no Doctor in their sane mind would deliberately hurt another human being or intentionally install a Lap band the wrong way.”

And just where did I say it was intentional or deliberate? I am certain that it WASN’T either. I believe he WAS incompetent. And, my biggest problem with him was his REACTION to me when I presented the problems. It’s that simple.

“What happened to you is a rare exception and I am not in the position to judge you or your Doctor because I only know your side of the story. I am very careful with the information that I read in forums.”

I have stated quite repeatedly that I KNOW that my experience was rare and unusual. But that doesn’t mean it DOESN’T happen to other people.

Here’s a simple and unscientific, but legitimate observation. Take a look at this forum. Go to the front page. Look at the listing of all the various subtopics that are presented. Look for “Lap-Band Success Stories”.

You’ll see that there are 47 threads and 448 posts

Now, go further down. Look for “Lap band Complications”.

You’ll see that there are 2,003 threads and 21,084 posts.

It would appear that the Complications outweigh the Success Stories by a margin that could only be described as “vast”.

Now, there are MANY reasons for this, and this is NOT an accurate measurement, but it DOES suggest that there are problems that ARE encountered by people. And my “message” to people is not to AVOID having the Lap band, rather make sure you do your homework THOROUGHLY so that you can mitigate the potential of there being problems in YOUR procedure. It’s that simple, and there should be nothing objectionable in that. And, one of the components of creating a successful surgical experience for yourself is CHOOSING the RIGHT SURGEON…..AND the RIGHT FACILITY.

I am not clear AT ALL why anyone would find that concept objectionable.

“At any rate, please do not take my candid words as a sign of disrespect or insult, I am just being honest.”

No, I understand that, and I understand your concerns about the things I am saying. It’s not easy to hear this stuff when you are contemplating this procedure.

“When I researched lapbanding I was so cautious about the entire procedure that I never thought I would actually find someone that I could really trust let alone agree to the procedure.

“I am not some naive little teenager that is SOLD a surgery,”

Understand that many, many people ARE naïve about this. It is an INDUSTRY. With billions of dollars at stake. And the Lap Band is the “darling” of the industry at the moment. A lot of people like to make the whole process sound very easy and rosy. Most often, it is. Sometimes it’s not. THAT is a reality.

I am a highly educated woman that lived in several countries and cities and therefore carries suitcases full of life- experiences with her anywhere she goes. What I am trying to say is that I appreciate your concern and your advice but I truly believe that I can make an educated decision and distinguish between a money hungry crook and an honest, genuinely caring professional.”

I never said that you WEREN’T capable of making a good decision. However, your responses in this thread would indicate that you DO have some reservations about it. And you should. It’s SURGERY. You should ALWAYS think twice or even three times before you have ANY elective surgery. And, I never said that MY surgeon was a “money hungry crook”. An incompetent brain-dead buffoon who should be slicing turkey at Subway perhaps, but not a money hungry crook. However….there ARE money-hungry crooks out there, and you do need to be aware of them. I suspect that Dr. Feiz is NOT one of those. He is probably a fine Surgeon. He probably slices turkey MUCH better than MY surgeon.

“Again, I do not mean to offend you.”

And I am not offended. You would know if I was.

“As someone that searches for "Los Angeles" and "Cedars" I had to read at least 15 to 30 of your very detailed posts in this forum.”

“I am sorry for you, I feel bad what happened to you and I wish you had a great experience like many other users on this board had. Please understand where I am coming from. I am a new user on this board and I am here to absorb the positive energy and spirit from positive people. I did not come here to be lectured about unethical or incompetent Doctors.”

I often hear people say that they come here for “support and encouragement, NOT to hear bad things” or something like that.

I need to point out that this forum is called “Lap Band Talk”, not “Lap Band Happy Land” Or “Band Nirvana”. People here talk about EVERYTHING with regard to the band. Not just the good stuff. You can find PLENTY of “positive” information about the surgery here, tons of terrific information about “good” doctors and positive outcomes. But I would have to seriously question your sense of reality if ALL you want to hear about is the “good stuff”.

Choosing a WLS is the same as most anything else, really. When I buy a new car, I want to know its safety track record. I want to know if there have been recalls. I want to know if there is ANYTHING about that vehicle that might preclude the possibility of it being wise choice for MY requirements. Now, there MAY be something about a particular car that is a little negative, but if the GOOD outweighs the bad in an appropriate proportion, then I will most likely buy the Car because it fills some particular NEED for me….even though it might have some quirk that will annoy me.

Now, with surgery, it’s a little different, but not THAT much. It’s still about your SAFETY. But if the potential POSITIVES outweigh the POTENTIAL negatives in a proportion that is comfortable for YOU, then you need to go for it. Plain and Simple. You CAN, however, have an IMPACT on those proportions by making the RIGHT CHOICES. And that’s what this about for me….making the RIGHT CHOICES.

“I have arrived at a point in my life where I do not need to have EVERYTHING under control, I can very well live with the uncertainties of life itself and rather focus on the positive things and positive outcomes than to waste my time and life with worrying and negative thoughts.”

“When something should go wrong I will deal with it with the same positive outlook.”

You CANNOT control EVERYTHING in your life. It does take some people many years to arrive at that conclusion. It is often very liberating when you learn that important lesson. You CAN, however, significantly mitigate the possibility of something going wrong by making GOOD choices. You may not be able to change the OUTCOME of something once it is in process, but you can certainly have an impact on the way it turns out by the choices that you make going into it.

“You really need to know how down lifting your posts are, especially for someone that is new here and was (until a couple of hours ago) very much looking forward to the journey she is about to embark on.”

“Down lifting”? If you searched my posts outside of the Cedars references you will actually find many posts that are “Up Pushing”. I’m not an opponent of the Lap Band. I heartily encourage people to GET one, if they have determined that the Lap Band is what will help them with their particular issue. But PART of that “self-education” process HAS to be a “reality check”. Knowing the BAD stuff will HELP you make the decisions that will lead you to the GOOD stuff.

I could spend the next few hours pounding out metaphors, examples, stories, etc, but the bottom line is that knowing the reality is NOT a bad thing. And knowing it should NOT keep you from having the surgery if you have determined that it IS what you need. I am VERY supportive of people moving forward on this. There are some WONDERFUL success stories in this forum, and some terrific people that will HELP you get to that “good place’ that you want to be.

“I have to excuse myself now and have to take a very long shower; this negativity was just too much.”

I also have to run and take a shower. But for an entirely different reason. :thumbup:

Again, no disrespect intended... we just seem to be VERY different people and I don’t think lap-band-forum-life is the kind of support that will do me any good.

And no disrespect was perceived. And, I think that if you knew me, you would find that we more alike than you might guess. We all have the same goals, dreams, and desires. For most of us, that includes good health. We are ALL on that path.

“I am a highly educated woman that lived in several countries and cities and therefore carries suitcases full of life- experiences with her anywhere she goes.”

And I have a suitcase as well. Unfortunately, mine contains a couple of half-empty bottles of Jack Daniels, some melted ice cream, some monkey food, a thong with the initials RS embroidered, and a citation from the Tucson Police Department for “lewd and lascivious conduct”.

It’s a long story.

Best of luck, and enjoy your journey!

HH

SoCal,

I'm sorry to hear about all of these things happening. I remember a couple months ago when you first started this process, I was too. We both had the same insurance and everything. I can't see what would be the big hold up. I had a couple issues with stuff with Beverly Hills Physicians in regards to what I'm getting billed for, so I hope that when this does get resolved it doesn't go down the same path my did because it wasn't too much better. Hopefully they can get this all resolved. Good luck!

omg!!!! I had the same problem. Now I am stuck with the bill. It's all an insurance scam!!!

omg!!!! I had the same problem. Now I am stuck with the bill. It's all an insurance scam!!!

Please elaborate...

Please elaborate...

Okay, So I'm thinking of going with Dr. Feiz at his Beverly Hills office BUT now I'm concerned because it may be a scam. Please tell me more about this...I'm worried. Thanks