L. Michael Howell Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

Dr. Howell did my open RNY as well as my husband's and I think he is great! He is a straight shooter with info and uses common sense.rnrnHe puts the silastic ring around the opening of your new pouch to try and prevent future stretching which was something I wanted.rnrnIn our area I think he is the best and would highly recommend him to anyone!

He is a great surgeon. Very honest and doesn't pull any punches. You definitely know what is going on throughout the process. The staff is awesome and they always have the information you need or will get it quickly. He has a Physicians Assistant who is very helpful. He did the open RNY on me and I have a 9 inch scar which is already fading thanks to using cocoa butter every night. The dietician at his office is superb (Barb Moe) and she give you her direct phone number and e-mail if you have any of those questions you always forget in the doctors office. He has been doing these for over 20 years and gave me the names of numerous people to talk with prior to surgery. They weren't all ringers. Several of the people were unsure if they would do it again and one was sure they wouldn't. I think he it a great surgeon and I would highly recommend him.

Dr. Howell is extemely competent with what he does. I was totally at ease with his procedure, and very confident in his results. He is not afraid to share his stats with you. His staff is fab! They are always caring when I call, and they are prompt about getting back to me.
Prior to surgery, all the risks are well defined. I have not had any surprises.
In my opinion, surgical competence far outweighs bedside manner! It's great to be a nice guy, but when you have my tummy in your hands, I want to make darn sure you know what the heck you are doing!!! Dr. Howell really knows his stuff.

Dr. L. Michael Howell is an extremely skilled, extraordinarily conscientious and caring surgeon. I trusted him with my life and thank God for him. This man has a lifetime of experience doing these surgeries and I think he has helped many realize their full potential and happiness. He used his talent, skill and brains to help me do what I had been unable to do for myself. I have the highest regard for him.

He is very proffessional
he is very interested in helping people

I have finally met Dr. Howell. He is very professional, kind and supportive, and didn't talk down to me. He moved quickly but I still didn't feel rushed; he answered all of my 9 million questions. I have talked with his PA Cindy, who has always taken my calls or promptly returned them. She has been very good at answering my questions and has helped me get all my necessary paperwork together. I am now waiting for the paperwork to be forwarded to my insurance for approval (please please please).
6-17-04 I'm three weeks post-op now and I have to say that everything went VERY smoothly. My incision looks very good and I didn't have to go home with any drains at all! I strongly recommend him to anyone and everyone who is interested in Open RNY.

Surgeon was very experienced and knew what he was doing which is why I had him do the surgery instead of having it done in my home town where the surgeons are just now learning how to do it. Others had warned me that he wasn't the warmest person but I chose him because he is the best. I would rather have surgical experience and competence than the best bedside manner. Dr Howell was very thorough taking care to make sure everthing went as well as possible and that I will have the best success. He is a reallllyyyyy busy man but that is because he is so good. He took me off of all diabetes meds but when that didn't work out at first (I had high blood sugars after surgery) he turned me over to my dr. who lives in my city and specializes in diabetes to handle this part from there. I am just over 3 months out and still on insulin but working on getting off of it.

My first impressions of Dr. Howell is that he's very knowledgable of this surgery. He's kind, straight to the point, and is very organized so I knew that things were going to so smoothly with my insurance. His staff were so friendly. Cindy Schwab, his assistant is so caring, she called me and we exchanged emails to keep things moving forward. I know that both Dr. Howell and Cindy have answered the same questions thousands of times, but their answers were personally directed to me, and didn't act like this was the 1,000th time of telling the same thing. I would like future patients to know that Dr. Howell has done over 4,000 gastric bypass procedures and has perfected the procedure over 30 years.

I like Dr. Howell right formthe start!
He was vert informative and has so much gathered knowledge over the years with his previous patients. I am very thankful to have such a experienced surgeon!!!!!

I talked with his office staff yesterday, and requested an information packet. They were very freindly and informative. I have also set up the initial appointment with my PCP to get the ball rolling. Can't wait to get the information!