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  1. #1
    Gastric Sleeve Member Scott_Phoenix_AZ's Avatar
    Surgery date
    03/10/2016
    Surgeon
    Dr. Ismael Cabrera
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Last Activity
    03-17-2016 10:50 AM
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    4
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    Default Not happy with Mexico Bariatric Center in Tijuana - Buyer Beware!

    March 16, 2016
    Hello! If you're reading this you might be considering getting your surgery in Mexico at the MexicoBariatricCenter. I am post op day 6 right now, have a fever of 102.5, and am feeling pretty crummy atm.

    FYI: I am a nursing student in my 4th block so I have some understanding of pharmacology and the importance of sterile/aseptic procedures.

    The positives:
    Price was about $4300 plus airfare, incidentals, tipping, etc. I estimate I spent close to $5k in all.
    Hotel accommodation and staff at the Hyatt Place in Tijuana was great. They will give you as much chicken or beef broth, sugar-free lime popsicles, or various flavors of sugar-free jello that you want.
    Surgeons and the Anesthesiologist were professional and did a first rate job.
    30 minute ride from San Diego Airport to the Mexico Border and another 15 minutes to the hotel. The hospital is only 10 minutes away from the hotel btw.


    Negatives:
    Oh..... where to start....
    Mexico Bariatric Center has outsourced their aftercare to a third party. The "nurses" responsible for helping with post-care are no more knowledgeable than Medical Assistants, although they do have a little medication administration training. However, their severely limited training, and understanding of bacteria becomes quite evident when witnessing their attempts (or lack there of) to prevent the spread of bacteria. Here are just a few examples: I never once witnessed a "nurse" use the hand sanitizer on the wall or wash their hands upon entering my room. I did witness my "nurse", Cesar, blow into his gloves to help open them up before sticking his hands in them. That sort of thing would probably get you fired in the United States. IV ports were frequently not cleaned or were simply given a quick single swipe of the alcohol pad before injecting medications into them. Those IV ports gets dragged all over the place and probably have little microscopic bits of feces and drug resistant bacteria on them. Which is a little like mainlining feces directly into my blood stream. When I told them I wanted them to do it correctly they would respond with "It's ok, don't worry, don't worry." And they'd just keep on doing what they were doing, as if my objections were completely irrelevant. Eventually I had to call and speak to the hospital administrator to have my "nurse" replaced with someone more competent.

    INTEGRITY is not something I found a great deal of with the non-management staff members. Perhaps placating (i.e., lying) is par for the course over there, but it was common enough that very quickly I realized I couldn't trust anything I was being told on face value. Please understand that this was a big issue that reoccurred on multiple occasions. Trusting the staff to do what they say they are going to do, or when they are going to do it, is a huge mistake. This includes the drivers as well. I can't overemphasize this enough.... to be fair, the management was great though, however they have nothing to do with patient aftercare.

    The third morning after the surgery several of the patients had been cleared to go and we were driven to a "Pharmacy". The "Pharmacist" behind the counter was selling anything and everything. He was trying to get us to buy different antibiotics than the ones we were sent home with. I don't think he realized that not all antibiotics work on all bacteria and you can't just take whatever. He did give out free samples of vitamin-B shots and Viagra for those who were interested. Did I mention this was the pharmacy the Mexico Bariatric Center sent us to? I ended up buying a few items while I was there only to discover we had been charged 300-400% more than the pharmacy at the grocery store across from the Hotel. The driver will then offer to take you and the other patients on a "tour and some shopping". These stores inflate their prices for the patients and provide a kickback to the driver (and most likely the Mexico Bariatric Center) just like the pharmacy did.

    PAIN MANAGEMENT! Unless you are willing to pay the extra $1000 for the pain pump that comes with either morphine or Dilaudid you will be offered the ghetto version of pain meds (e.g., Ketorolac, tramadol). Although these medications do help offset the pain they do not provide the additional benefit of the euphoric feeling from narcotics. They will offer you all sorts of ridiculous reasons whey they don't want to give you those medications and if you don't have a background in pharmacology you may actually start to believe them. But, they are lying to you. Remember, if you spent the extra $1000 you could have all the narcotic pain meds you wanted in the form of a patient controlled pain pump. I honestly believe they tried to keep people in enough pain that they would agree to spend the extra money. One "nurse" told me that they wouldn't give them to me because of the nausea. However, they give you meds for nausea. "Doctor" Sing tried to convince me that the reason they don't give narcotics is because people are less likely to do their breathing exercises..... Ummmm.... the #1 reason people don't do breathing exercises or participate in their aftercare not a lack of motivation or education on the benefits, but is lack of pain management. That's not my opinion, that's a fact. It was just one stupid excuse after another. The additional pain I (and many other patients) endured as a result of these penny pinching, dishonest, dimwits would be criminal in the United States. You'll get plenty of narcotic pain meds if you choose to have the surgery here in the states.

    I was advised by that I do not need a passport, by Leili Kohan my patient coordinator, to enter Mexico because their company has a special medical pass, which lets them get across the border without the long wait times. Leili was adamant about that. What she failed to mention was that in order to re-enter the U.S. you definitely need one. I was fortunate in that I ordered a passport just in case otherwise I would probably still be in Mexico right now.

    Summary:
    I am glad I had the surgery despite what I have and continue to go through. I wouldn't be opposed to having some other type of surgery in Mexico at a later date. I would absolutely NOT RECOMMEND the MEXICO BARIATRIC center. Additionally, make sure that narcotic pain medication (e.g., Percoset, Vicoden) will be available and have them put it in writing stating you get a full refund for all services rendered if this is not the case. Trust me on this, unless you're one of the rare people who felt absolutely fine, you are going to want narcotics.


  2. Gastric Sleeve Surgery With Weight Loss Agents
  3. #2
    Gastric Sleeve Member
    Surgery date
    04/06/2016
    Surgeon
    Dr. Ariel Ortiz
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Last Activity
    09-29-2023 05:46 PM
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    Default Re: Not happy with Mexico Bariatric Center in Tijuana - Buyer Beware!

    Yikes! I am having surgery in Mexico but not at the Mexico Bariatric Center. I'm having it at the Obesity Control Center. I've heard great things about it. I'm sorry your experience was the way it was. Glad you shared it though.....definitely things to watch for and information to ask about ahead of time!
    Better luck on the rest of your journey!



  4. #3
    Gastric Sleeve Member Scott_Phoenix_AZ's Avatar
    Surgery date
    03/10/2016
    Surgeon
    Dr. Ismael Cabrera
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Last Activity
    03-17-2016 10:50 AM
    Posts
    4
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    Default Re: Not happy with Mexico Bariatric Center in Tijuana - Buyer Beware!

    Thank you!
    I'm actually feeling better today because my fever seems to have subsided. Yesterday I went to see my primary who checked on the surgical incisions and she said they looked fantastic, even better than many of the U.S. surgical patients she saw on her rotations. She was a little concerned about the efficacy of the take home antibiotics I was given in Mexico since I had developed a fever. She ordered a replacement script for the Keflex, Zolfran, and gave me a script for some Vicoden to help with the fever and the pain from the severe headaches. Additionally, she prescribed me another antibiotic, Metronidazole, since I may have picked up something during my hospital stay. I wasn't dehydrated and my stomach itself hasn't been bothering me. I did try to lift my 40 lb suitcase onto my bed and started to feel an odd pulling sensation in my stomach (never felt this sensation before), so I immediately dropped the bag and found someone to help me lift the bag. Won't be trying anything like that again soon.

    On the food side of things; I've found that a few spoonfuls of plain oatmeal (with a little Stevia & Cinnamon), chewed to mush, has me feeling full and amazingly satisfied within just a few seconds. Was a big help in a moment of weakness when I was considering trying to eat a muffin, whew! I checked the Mayo clinics's website for their post sleeve diet options which had a couple different food items not on my original list. I'm too new a member to post a URL so if interested try a google search with Mayo "Gastric bypass diet: What to eat after the surgery"


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  6. #4
    Gastric Sleeve Member Scott_Phoenix_AZ's Avatar
    Surgery date
    03/10/2016
    Surgeon
    Dr. Ismael Cabrera
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Last Activity
    03-17-2016 10:50 AM
    Posts
    4
    Said "Thanks" 0 Times
    Was Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post
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    Default Re: Not happy with Mexico Bariatric Center in Tijuana - Buyer Beware!

    Congrats on your upcoming surgery date! If you have a moment of weakness and are tempted to over eat during your pre-op diet phase (not that you should, but if you do), eat more of the Greek Yogurts. I was so stressed/hungry the day before my surgery I almost ordered a mini pizza or some street tacos. Instead a group of us patients walked to a nearby grocery store and bought several Greek yogurts, which, along with the broth and jello, had me filling stuffed and pushed all temptations away. Plus yogurt (provided it doesn't have fruit) leaves your system fast, gives you added protein, and probiotic-ish benefits.

    There was a client from another weight loss group that stayed at the same hotel as we did who broke down and ate a big meal (tacos and beer) the night before his surgery and the physicians postponed his surgery for 3 days. The patient had to cover the expenses of the extra time at the hotel for him and his companion.

    OH SNAP! I just realized that any bariatric patients in Tijuana staying at the Hyatt Place Hotel & one other hotel about a block further up the street, are going to most likely end up at the same hospital with the same "nurses" I had. There were patients from other bariatric groups at our same hospital. I'm sorry I can't remember the name of it, but I'll try and describe it just in case you end up there. 4 floors in total and tiny compared to hospitals in the United States. Their are hospital rooms on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floor, but the rooms on the 2nd floor aren't apparent at first unless you walk into the back areas and open some doors. There is a small cafe at the entrance of the 1st floor and across the street there is a building that I think was some sort of family planning service or something like that. From the window of the waiting area on the 2nd floor, where you are made to wait for your pre -op tests, the building to your right has several satellite dishes (blue I think), and a single Red or Orange satellite dish on the corner of the roof of that building. Oh, and you can see a Costco off into the distance.

    Anyways if that's your hospital; get your anesthesiologist or surgeon to agree to allow you to have actual narcotics (Percoset or Vicodin), post surgery if you request them.

    One last thing. I found the business card of the "Pharmacy" where our companies driver had taken us, the one that sold anything behind the counter (e.g., narcotic pain meds, xanax, valium, etc.).

    Legal Disclaimer: I'm not a Medical Doctor, this is just my opinion and all statements I make are just my opinion and should not be misconstrued as anything other than my opinion. You should check with a Physician before doing anything related to medications and/or surgery. If you plan on pre-purchasing or bringing any narcotics with you for pain relief you better let your surgeon and anesthesiologist know before the surgery because they may need to make modifications to the type of anesthesia they use or you run the risk of causing yourself additional injury and/or death. Yikes!

    The business card I have from the company is in Spanish so I'll just write down everything it says, you should let the "pharmacist" know your in town for bariatric surgery.
    FAR-MART; Canon Jhonson; Q.F.B. Armando Martinez M.; Tel. 011 +52(664) 2154353; E-mail armart@gmail.com; PLAZA EMILY CANON JHONSON 7910-2 COL, INDEPENDENCIA, TIJUANA, B.C. C.P. 22055.


  7. #5
    Gastric Sleeve Member Munecagirl85's Avatar
    I have had a gastric sleeve.
    Name
    Ashley mejia
    Surgery date
    11/10/2015
    Surgeon
    Dr rodriguez juarez mexico
    Join Date
    Nov 2015
    Last Activity
    03-17-2017 06:10 AM
    Location
    Greenville sc
    Posts
    378
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    Default Re: Not happy with Mexico Bariatric Center in Tijuana - Buyer Beware!

    My friend and i both had ours at star medica 6800 a bit more but was perfect besides the nurses they just are not trained as they lur here inhad to be put to sleep before my iv was in not one could find it! That hurt... Also noone explained the breakthing machine i never used it and when i got home i coudnt breath so i was in er all nighht w ct scans and xrays they bill is 8,5@@! More than my surgery itself haha




    First goal 295- 4-11-16

    Second goal 265 - 8-15-16 (that took forever lol halfway there!)

    3rd goal 200 -

    ATLAST final goal 165-

  8. Gastric Sleeve Surgery With Weight Loss Agents
  9. #6
    Gastric Sleeve Member Belle2's Avatar
    I have had a gastric sleeve.
    Surgery date
    07/21/2015
    Surgeon
    Dr. Jay
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Last Activity
    01-05-2017 05:31 PM
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    Default Re: Not happy with Mexico Bariatric Center in Tijuana - Buyer Beware!

    I can't believe that anyone would pig out the night before surgery, but some do. My surgeon told me that he had a woman do that and lie about it. He opened her up and food started coming out. He had to suction and she could have died. If anyone here is reading this pre-op, beware! You may die from such an action.


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