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Beware of Dr Almanza

  1. dhessy
    dhessy
    I had my surgery on 12/4 with Dr. A. My surgery was supposed to be on 12/5 but they did at least 4 of us a day early. Our choice. Starting the very next day they were concerned with the concentration of the fluid in my drain. The hotel Dr. stated that they might have to go back in and see what the issue is. I thought that was OK since I had an extra day in Mexico to recover. The next 2 days they were still concerned but did nothing. They ended sending me home with my drain. I spent the first 2 days back in the states in the hospital because I had a hematoma on my sleeve(inside of me). Thousands of dollars later I'm doing great and have lost 35 pounds in three weeks. The night before we left Mexico I requested my medical records. I was told it would take 72 hours. I've requested them a couple more times and the hospital had several people trying to get the records and to talk to Dr. A. No luck. As I say, I'm 3 weeks post op and they are ignoring me. Outside of the lack of medical records I feel they owe me at least a partial refund for not completing their job. If they hadn't made such a big deal about it I would just assume they didn't know about it and probably would have helped me if they had known. They problem here is that they knew there was a problem the entire time but never followed through on fixing the issue.

    I do know of many other people that have used Dr. A and they did not experience the same issues. Just be careful because what might seem like a deal may or may not end up to be the case. Buyer beware!
  2. newlookonlife
    newlookonlife
    I'm sorry you have had ro endure this. It's not right and it give medical tourism a bad look. I'm glad you spoke out so that others can make informed decisions. Prayers.
  3. Southern Kitty
    Southern Kitty
    I had my sleeve by Dr Almanza 1/10/14. My only concern was my care at recovery at hotel ticuan. The nurse didn't do very well and didn't follow thru twice. I was lucky to be a nurse so I felt secure with my care because I watched them like a hawk and made sure things was right. I did my own dressings and such due to fear of infection. My sleeve buddy had ALOT of issues after and then was hospitalized back in the states but my other one had no issues.
  4. Luann
    Luann
    I am sorry this happened to you. Thank you for speaking up about it. At least others who are considering their surgeon will have more information to help them make a decision.
    It is horrifying though that your life was in danger & you had to pay so much out of pocket to put things right. The very, very least the surgeon should do is refund his fee. That and of course have cooperated with getting you your records and coordinating care with your US physicians!
  5. Allfire
    Allfire
    The morning shift at the Hotel is wonderful. The best Nurse is a woman named Alex. The night shift is very bad. Don't let Luis touch you. He is mean and hurt me. I still have bruises.
    The shifts at the hotel are 6am to 6p. Then 6 pm to 6 am. Search out Alex. She will make everything better.
  6. linzy2886
    linzy2886
    so strange that i see this exact same post in every group that im in and even the ones im not in. and another weird thing is its the only negative comment i have ever seen on him. hmmmmm
  7. Sleeveroo
    Sleeveroo
    Just do a Google and spend an hour and I guarantee you that you will find multiple major complications. Several were published in Canada newspapers.
    Others are on ************, etc.....
    Google:
    Dr. Almanza leaks, infections, spleen, complications.
    There are so many incidents whether you discount them as not accurate is your choice.
    There was an article about stapling and how some surgeons charging under 5 K use fewer packs due to cost. These staples are costly. It is alleged that some surgeons purchase lower grade staples that are either expired or veterinary grade. All I can say is do your homework,be objective and do not make the decision based upon cost.
  8. char602
    char602
    Absolutely! There are definitely lots of negative reviews/comments about him. I am familiar with the original poster and am aware that he definitely had the complications as listed above. He went from the airport straight to hospital where he was admitted. He is fine now and losing weight. I don't think he intends to deter people from using Dr. A, he even stated he knows lots of people have great results with him.
    But if there are complications, you will likely pay more than you saved. I had originally scheduled with Dr. A, then changed my mind when my insurance decided to approve my surgery (after initially denying it). I'm so glad I decided to wait.
  9. Sleeveroo
    Sleeveroo
    If one does not have insurance coverage for a complication such as a leak in the US, the cost can easily exceed 100K and good luck finding a high end bariatric surgeon to take your case. I would rather spend several thousand dollars more initially to minimize the risks, since risks occur with any surgeon.I will not roll the dice and select by cost. This is major surgery, not equivalent to purchasing a car. You get what you pay for.
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