--------------------------------------------------------------------------------rnrnDr. Corvala and the staff at Hospital Angeles were awesome. Our trip was easy and the surgery went excellent. The only issue was that not all staff nurses speack english, but guess what you can find someone who does or utilize the papers they give you upon arrival which give you the most common us questions with the spanish translation right next to it.rnrnThings to remember: rnMy husband and I will be developing a full line referal service for helping any and people looking into this option, I can say the surgery and hospital are great unfortunately the pre information is lacking.rnrn1. Passport is not needed unless you fly into Tijuana, but you will need id and a birth certificate. However June of 2009 this will change to passport only, so we suggest getting one.rn2. Whichever referal services you use they are helpful, but we found several items you may want to know that they don't share to well.rnPayment: Best option Cashier Check made out to te doctorrnSome came with Check made to cash bad no no she had to go back to san diego to cash it and then pay big fee. rnOthers came with Credit Card... Call the CC company before traveling as they may not allow charges out of the country. rnGet receipts for everything - Definite tax right off potential rnThe referal services are working to make money just like everyone else so dont expect the world but ask you questions... Payment, pick up. rnMedications; in the hospital they have a huge mark up - Walk out the front of the hospital, cross the street and walk 3 blocks to you right, there is a 24 hour pharmacy and we spent nothing really for our perscription as well as no perscription needs. rnRemember the minor difficulties with communication weere nothing, I can tell you that the hospital is exceptional similar to a 5 star time share, they are constantly clean, the staff takes all needed precautions even more than i have seen in the US and they treat you like celebrities.:thu mbup: No my weight lose starts.rnrnAny questions let me know, also I will post my website with all referall option soon and list the url here.
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Dr. Corvala is very compassionate and seemed to truly care about his patient's emotional well being as well as their physical. His staff was great and the facility was too. Even after I arrived back home I received several emails from my patient facilitator and his staff making sure I was doing ok. I would not hesitate to refer anyone to him and his staff. I only wish I could go back for my fills just to keep in touch with them.
I wnet thru \"beliteweight.com\" for my surgery. They are coordinators for this hospital. And very wonderful people. They take good care of you. On their site is info about the surgeons and hospital.rnrnI met Dr. Corvala soon after i ck'd in at admitting, while in the waiting room of the hospital. He was very nice and i felt comfortable with him right away. Our meeting was short but i felt he was sincere about my health and the surgery. I did not meet with him again until i was being prep'd for surgery. All of the staff seemed very competant in their duties. Dr. Covala and his staff do A LOT of these surgeries every day and it seems to run like clock work. Various members of his staff ck'd on me often before and after surgery. Beliteweight was the coordinator for the surgery and their staff in Mexico also came by to ck on my and fill me in on everything. Dr. Corvala's physiciatric Dr. came by the day after surgery to assess how i was doing mentally and to evaluate how she thought i would do after i got home. That night, Bibi, with Beliteweight sent me my discharge paperwork that included the seriel number and info pertaining to my \"band\" and my perscriptions for aftercare pain. I thought that my pain meds to bring home with me would be covered in the cost of the surgery but were not. No big deal tho. My driver stopped at a pharmacy on the way out of Mexico and i was able to pick them up myself. My meds came 4 tabs to a box but i was able to purchase as many as i needed. And was able to buy generic ones. The cost was very reasonable. rnSome have said the language barrier can be a problem, but they give you a sheet of paper with common statement, questions, problems etc... with spanish translation. I didn't have to use it and was able to communicate just fine. There are English speaking personnel there, and they will find one for you if needed. The hospital was BEAUTIFUL & CLEAN!!! Everything was state-of-the-art. I would have surgery in their hospital again. Everyone was very professional and considerate.
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Dr. Lopez Corvala has been doing bariatric surgery for over 18 years in Tijuana,Mexico. He is the director of the Bariatric Surgeons Training Center of Mexico. He was a proctor of Inamed, the manufacturer of the Lap Band. Being a Proctor for Inamed, meant he was qualified to teach other surgeons the procedure and did so, in the U.S.A., when Lap Band was passed by the FDA in 2001.rnDr. Lopez has a multi-disciplinary team in his clinic, including nutritionist, psychologist, anaesthetist, cardiologist, and a helpful office staff. Dr. Carmen Calleja is one of the physician co-ordinators and a nutritionist in Dr. Lopez' clinic. She spends time pre-op and post-op with patients to ensure a trouble free procedure and follow-up.rnDr. Lopez, Dr. Carmen and all the staff are very friendly, helpful and caring of all their patients and are always available for follow up questions and help.rnThe only negative, is that Tijuana, is far from Saskatchewan, Canada, where I live. But because i'm an R.N., I learned to do Lapband fills and provide this service to Lapbanders in my province.
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I felt very confident in the choice I had made for my surgeon. I did not get a chance to meet him until right before my surgery. But he assured me everything would be just fine. It was. I am 3 days post op. I had thought I would go back to work today but I am still feeling a little sore and thought another days rest would be better. I would recommend Dr. Corvala. The experience was remarkable. The only thing that was a little of a problem was the language barrier. But really I was taken care of very well. I speak a little spanish and was able to get by.