John Kellum Bariatric Surgeon M.D.,F.A.C.S.

My first consult with Dr. Kellum was good. He was pleasant & easy to talk to. It was the regrestration desk that I got upset with I had to pay 160.up front. Which I didn't have. Paige my sisterinlaw paid it for me. They were all very nice. Notrhing really I would recommend him. He was very therough going over the risk the pro & cons of having & not having it. I am hoping he will be doing my sugery. I like him very much & I have heard a lot of good things about him.I do beleive sugerical competence is more important but both if possible.

I LIKED DR.KELLUM. HE IS TO THE POINT, BUT NOT A HARD NOSE.
HE WAS VERY PLEASENT. HIS OFFICE STAFF WAS WONDERFULL.
HE DID ADVISE ME OF ALL THE RISKS OF SURGERY, AND WE
DISCUSSED THEM. I FEEL, SO FAR, THAT HE IS A VERY GOOD
DR. I ONLY HAD ONE MEETING WITH HIM.
I AM HAPPY WITH WHAT I SEE SO FAR..

Dr. Kellum was easy to talk to. His staff was great, too. He didn't seem to appreciate my humor.

I was a little nervous of him at first looked a little stern.
Yes the more I heard about him and the more I talked to him the more comfortable I became.
His office staff is the best, the nurses were all great.
Nothing I didn't like about him.

Medical College of Virginia has an excellent aftercare program they follow you for the rest of your life.

They were straight up about all the risks, and I would say he's one of the best

Dr. Kellum immediately made me feel like I was doing the right thing and that he could help me.

My opinion never really changed over time. He is extremely busy, so I never have too much time to talk to him, but I get the feeling that he is supportive.

I guess what I like least would be that he is so extremely busy and that I have to wait a long time to see him.

He is encouraging of proper aftercare and educates me at my appointments.

He is part of a group at Medical College of Virginia and they have a good aftercare program. Jill is the nurse and she is awesome!!!! She is always available for phone calls and e-mails.

I would say is surgical competence is his strong point and in the end that is the most important.

My first impression of Dr. Kellum was good. He let me know everything I needed to know. He was very honest about the insurance woes and also about the risks involved in surgery. He made it very clear that this was not a magic cure but a tool to help my journey. His office staff was excellent and they never made you feel that you should be doing anything other than what you were doing to overcome what I call an awful disease. He spoke of his secretary, Yolanda and how she really knew how to get the letters written in a timely fashion and sent out to the insurance company. There is a support group and and aftercare program for the patients after surgery. I would definitly rate his staff a super fat 10!!!

My first impression of him was that he was very seriuos in nature, but took the time wih me to help me through any fears I had.
Him and his staff treated me excellant.
I would recommend him to anyone who wants to have a great surgeon.

I finally got to my surgeon's appointment on Friday April 28 and was extremely impressed with the office staff. Everyone was very nice and helpful. I was complimented by the nutrition counselor for comeing so well prepared with copies of all paperwork that I thought would be helpful to them. Finally I met Dr. Kellum and was impressed so much with him. He listened to me and was careing. I had a vertical banded gastroplasty in Oct. of 1985 which produced some results but now what was fully expected. He informed me that they do not do this type of surgery anymore only the gastric bypass. He thinks I certainly meet all the criteria, have proven to have the comorbidities and says he thinks I should be approved for this surgery. He says if I have it then after about a year he will send me back to the plastic surgeon for the much needed panniculectomy. I am hopeful that everything goes well and will hope to hear an approval soon. I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has had Dr. Kellum for thier surgery or have had thier surgery at the medical college of Virginia. I was very impressed with the staff as well as Dr. Kellum and came out of there feeling very hopeful. I have been doing such research on this surgery for the past year now and I would really recommend to anyone to do that before you actually go to see a surgeon. I will update at a future time with great news hopefully. Sincerely, Sarah Brackett Aust 13, 2000. I had my surgery on July 24, 2000. I am extremely pleased with Dr. John Kellum as my surgeon. My surgery was a difficult revision surgery. More difficult than either Dr. Kellum or I had imagined. I was in the hospital for one week. I feel I recieved the best care. Dr. Kellum, his residents and his staff took excellent care of me. I feel I had one of the best surgeons for my surgery and would recommend him highly.

My first impression of Dr. Kellum was that he was very professional, and dedicated. He was very thorough in describing the surgery. He makes sure you understand that this surgery is a tool, and not a magic pill. I found his office staff to be very helpful, and Yolanda doesn't mind you calling 3 times a week to find out if she has heard from your insurance company. Jill is available through email virtually anytime. I will be experiencing the aftercare program soon, and at that point I will post about their performance in that category. At this point I would rate the team a 10.

I have actually only meet with Dr. Kellum once, however I really liked him. I am the type of person who will ask A LOT of questions, and he was patient and attentive when we met, which gets big bonus points in my book. I have a great deal of confidence in the entire practice, I have meet with prior patients and feel comfortable with MCV's reputation. Dr. Kellum was apparently trained by Dr Sugarman who is a leader in the field and has been published multiple times.
The office staff has been OUTSTANDING. The woman(Yolanda) who worked with the insurance company kept me updated and didn't seem to mind when I called for the status. She took the time to really talk to me, and didn't just try to get me off the phone as quickly as possible. I also can't say enough about Jill (the surgical nurse). She is a wealth of information and has a fantastic personality.
I haven't come across anything that I don't like about Dr. Kellum, and anyone considering him should just be prepared to work more with his office staff and Nurse. (Which is fine with me, I'd rather him focus on the medical aspect and have good office support for everything else).
Aftercare and the structure of the program seems very important. The monthly support group is well attended and a valuable tool. Jill provides her email address and we have life time access to a nutrionist. The literature I have received outlines longterm expectations and is very clear.
Dr. Kellum requires that you receive and read a brouchure before they will even sched an initial consult. In that pamphlet the risks are clearly outlined, along with their probability. When you go for your initial consult you also see a video that talks more about the complications and what they mean.
I would rate Dr. Kellum very highly so far and am pleased with both his competence and his manner. While he is not very "warm and fuzzy", his manner works well for my personal preference.