Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!

Dr. Jefferson Vaughan - My Experience



Recommended Posts

Last year when I began my process of looking at bariatric surgery I first contacted Dr. Vaughan's office and went to the seminar that he puts on month for potential patients. It was a very informative seminar and he seems like a very personable person. He had a patient talk in the seminar that had gastric by-pass done several years ago who had lost a ton of weight too. Dr. Vaughan pushed gastric by-pass as the way to go but did also say he will do lapband proceedures as well.

After a week I contacted his office about what steps to take next and we started looking into if my insurance would cover the proceedure. Well like so many others out there my insurance would not cover the proceedure so then it was self pay. The cost for Dr. Vaughan's group was more then what I could afford and ultimately I went to one of the leading surgeons in the bariatric field who is in Mexico.

So for my after care I wanted to find a local doctor to do my fills and follow ups with. Naturaly the first person I looked to was Dr. Vaughan since for me he's only like 5 minutes from where I live. Unfortunately for me Dr. Vaughan will not see Mexico Patients and so I had to find another surgeon to do my aftercare and follow ups.

So from my experience Dr. Vaughan seems like he would be a decent surgeon but if you are a Mexico surgical patient don't bother calling him for aftercare or fills.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I was banded on Sept 30th by Dr. Vaughan..I had complications and also caught pnemonia so had to be held in the hospital until all of the super strong antibiotics to knock out the pnemenia were finished.

I was released from the hospital oct 11.

Doctor Vaughan has done over 5,000 of these and I am so thankful I had him.

My problem was I had so much fat under my muscle layer that there was very little room for the band.

He had to go in a 2nd time. Long story was that he was going to make a slight change in the location and if that did not work he was going to remove it.

Out of all of his patients he has only had to remove 2 bands. It was looking like I would be a statistic but his original idea about moving it worked out and the next day after the 2nd operation I felt great and knew it was going to work. He also said to me that I would probably be one of the few patients that would never need an adjustment.

Although it was a negative experience and extremely uncomfortable, the result has been very positive. The day of surgery I weighed 244. Today 25 days later I weigh 211 and can already feel the difference. I guess my advice would be to make sure you have an experienced surgeon.

I know its generally a fairly easy operation, but if there are complications its nice to have a guy who has "seen it all" and could fix it. I am very happy that Dr. Vaughan was my surgeon..

Another thing to make a note of is that if you have Medicare, this procedure will be covered as long as it is performed at a "Medicare Center of Excellence". Jupiter Medical Center qualifies, therefore, the cost to me was nothing....

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Trending Products

  • Trending Topics

  • Recent Status Updates

    • KeeWee

      It's been 10 long years! Here is my VSG weight loss surgiversary update..
      https://www.ae1bmerchme.com/post/10-year-surgiversary-update-for-2024 
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Aunty Mamo

      Iʻm roughly 6 weeks post-op this morning and have begun to feel like a normal human, with a normal human body again. I started introducing solid foods and pill forms of medications/supplements a couple of weeks ago and it's really amazing to eat meals with my family again, despite the fact that my portions are so much smaller than theirs. 
      I live on the island of Oʻahu and spend a lot of time in the water- for exercise, for play,  and for spiritual & mental health. The day I had my month out appointment with my surgeon, I packed all my gear in my truck, anticipating his permission to get back in the ocean. The minute I walked out of that hospital I drove straight to the shore and got in that water. Hallelujah! My appointment was at 10 am. I didn't get home until after 5 pm. 
      I'm down 31 pounds since the day of surgery and 47 since my pre-op diet began, with that typical week long stall occurring at three weeks. I'm really starting to see some changes lately- some of my clothing is too big, some fits again. The most drastic changes I notice however are in my face. I've also noticed my endurance and flexibility increasing. I was really starting to be held up physically, and I'm so grateful that I'm seeing that turn around in such short order. 
      My general disposition lately is hopeful and motivated. The only thing that bugs me on a daily basis still is the way those supplements make my house smell. So stink! But I just bought a smell proof bag online that other people use to put their pot in. My house doesn't stink anymore. 
       
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      Oh yeah, something I wanted to rant about, a billing dispute that cropped up 3 months ago.
      Surgery was in August of 2023. A bill shows up for over $7,000 in January. WTF? I asks myself. I know that I jumped through all of the insurance hoops and verified this and triple checked that, as did the surgeon's office. All was set, and I paid all of the known costs before surgery.
      A looong story short, is that an assistant surgeon that was in the process of accepting money from my insurance company touched me while I was under anesthesia. That is what the bill was for. But hey, guess what? Some federal legislation was enacted last year to help patients out when they cannot consent to being touched by someone out of their insurance network. These types of bills fall under something called, "surprise billing," and you don't have to put up with it.
      https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises
      I had to make a lot of phone calls to both the surgeon's office and the insurance company and explain my rights and what the maximum out of pocket costs were that I could be liable for. Also had to remind them that it isn't my place to be taking care of all of this and that I was going to escalate things if they could not play nice with one another.
      Quick ending is that I don't have to pay that $7,000+. Advocate, advocate, advocate for yourself no matter how long it takes and learn more about this law if you are ever hit with a surprise bill.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      Some days I feel like an infiltrator... I'm participating in society as a "thin" person. They have no idea that I haven't always been one of them! 🤣
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • ChunkCat

      Thank you everyone for your well wishes! I totally forgot I wrote an update here... I'm one week post op today. I gained 15 lbs in water weight overnight because they had to give me tons of fluids to bring my BP up after surgery! I stayed one night in the hospital. Everything has been fine except I seem to have picked up a bug while I was there and I've been running a low grade fever, coughing, and a sore throat. So I've been hydrating well and sleeping a ton. So far the Covid tests are negative.
      I haven't been able to advance my diet past purees. Everything I eat other than tofu makes me choke and feels like trying to swallow rocks. They warned me it would get worse before it gets better, so lets hope this is all normal. I have my follow up on Monday so we'll see. Living on shakes and soup again is not fun. I had enough of them the first time!! LOL 
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
  • Recent Topics

  • Hot Products

  • Sign Up For
    Our Newsletter

    Follow us for the latest news
    and special product offers!
  • Together, we have lost...
      lbs

    PatchAid Vitamin Patches

    ×