Kathi R.
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Elmer Valin
"Dr. Valin is young - but not as young as I thought he would be from reading other people's comments. I would say he is in his late 30's, early 40's at the most. He is from Hawaii, but has no real accent. I found him to be thorough in his explanation of the proceedure, and he was very clever in his questioning of me. He wanted to know what _I_ already knew of the surgery and the after-care, what kind of support system I had, and if I knew anyone who had the surgery. I think HE was screening ME to be sure I was serious, had done my homework, and truly knew what I was in for. One thing _I_ wanted to know was how many proceedures he had done. He said he had done over 200 last year (2001), had NEVER lost a patient, and didn't intend to start now. I was impressed by his quiet confidence. There was no sense of arrogance - just a calm surety that he knew what he was doing. He performs some of the pre-op tests himself (the GI tube to examine the stomach), which I think is important. he knows what he is looking for - another physician performing the proceedure may not have the same criteria as he does. Also, his twin brother is a cardiologist, and he performs the stress-test - which I also think is neat. They work together - which is beneficial to everyone. Overall, I feel completely confident in his ability to give me great care in the operating room and in the years to follow. My only concern is how busy the office is. It is VERY difficult to get through to a live person because they are short-staffed. They will frequently put all calls through to the answering service during regular business hours. When I expressed a concern over this, the nurse, Debbie I think her name is (also Dr. V's wife) said that when I am post-op, if I have a medical emergency or concern, I can leave a message with the answering service and she will get beeped immediately. She then returns the call right away. While I understand they are swamped, and the explanation made me feel better about being able to contact them if I need them, I still feel that a professional medical office should have the ability to answer the phones during regular business hours. If they can't handle the number of calls they get, then they need to hire another office person. This is my ONLY gripe - and it's a small one, I know. But it does bother me. Hopefully if enough people bring it to their attention, they will take some action. I guess it just proves that many people are in need to their services, and this is the price we pay for using the best Bariatric surgeon in CT. 4-29-03 This needed to be updated. The office has hired several new people since I originally wrote this and it is much easier to get through to a live person now. Things seem to run much smoother. "
About Me
N. Stonington, CT
Location
32.6
BMI
RNY
Surgery
09/26/2002
Surgery Date
Jan 30, 2002
Member Since
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