Paresh Rajajoshiwala Bariatric Surgeon M.D.,F.A.C.S.

I finally got to meet with all the professionals at the wish center. My new doctor is Dr. Rajajoshiwala. He was pretty straight forward and serious and gave me a quick once over and then with the blink of an eye the consult was done. HOWERVER, I was in the office for 6 hours seeing a nutritionist, exercise physiologist, and a psychologist. All of which were mandatory and NOT covered by insurance. I thought this was a little ridiculous but the best was yet to come. I felt like the wish center was pretty shady from my horrible last visit but after 6 hours and the insurance guy being up front about the othe docs not covered by my insurance I was starting to feel reassured. Then WHAM they hit me with what I knew had to be coming- a RIDICULOUS "lifetime support fee" of $1850 due at my next visit ( before surgery can be scheduled. What a crock. What is even better is the fact that they sprung this on me AFTER I had already seen the $1000 worth of specialists AND that if they ever go out of business we don't get a refund. ROAR!!!!!

First impression of 'Dr. Raja' was that he was a very knowledgable and stoic man. However, the first meeting was in a group presentation format. After the presentation, I spoke with him one on one and found him to be very personable. He even cracked a joke! For some reason, I felt an instant connection with him. My subsequent interactions with him have only affirmed this.
As for staff, his nurse Stephanie is wonderful, very helpful. Also, the dietician and psychologist are very professional and friendly. There is a new exercise 'guy' from my initial visit to now, and let's just say I was not too impressed with the new guy.
From reading profiles on this site and speaking to people that have used other surgeons, I believe the WISH Center's program to be more demanding and much more structured. All departments have strict requirements that must be met before you are approved for surgery. I may be wrong, but many people I have spoken with have not had the diet restictions and exercise requirements I have had pre-op. They do this to prepare you for your upcoming lifestyle change. There will be no surprises!

I love Dr. Raja! He is an incredibly warm and responsive Dr. He is soft spoken, and extremely knowledgeable, as is the rest of the WISH Center staff. I will say that I anticipate a decline in the level of service offered through TWC, simply because of the numbers of people requiring the gastric bypass RNY. That said, I am happy and proud to be a WISH center patient, and would gladly do it again through their program.

For more information, check out their website: <a href="http://www.wishcenter.org/"> The WISH Center</a>

He was very serious and slim. He had a slight sense of humor. Very knowledgeable. He addressed the risks with knowledge and confident that he did not expect it ot happen. He was very calm and strict. He asked me several times if I had questions.

Dr. Raja, seems to be a friendly, easily approachable, knowledgeable and skilled surgeon who cares about his patients. I've not had much interaction with him up to this point, but I am impressed with what I have seen thus far. There are actually 3 surgeons on staff, and I believe they are randomly assigned patients, but I could be wrong.

The staff is helpful, knowledgeable, warm and professional and appear committed to helping us get through the surgery with as little complication as possible. They are available via phone or email and responsive to most needs of their patients.

The slide presentations are informative and allow plenty of time to take notes and absorb facts rather than hearing it verbatim or trying to read print-outs. They have a comprehensive program both before and after surgery and spent a great deal of time stressing the importance of a change in lifestyle. They do this without making the patient feel pressured.

The office is self-contained, performing the necessary physiological and psychological profiles on-site, and on both visits (initial consult, pre-op) we spent 4-5 hours meeting with the team of specialists: psychiatrist, nutritionist, physiologist, nurse and surgeon, reviewing the videos, discussing paperwork and hand-outs, and talking about any concerns we might have. They also stress the importance of having a support person attend visits with you at all times.

They made sure we had a thorough understanding of the procedure before, during and after surgery. My only complaint would be the billing. We weren't informed in advance that we would be tested and it requires an upfront charge of up to $2,000 per patient (depending upon the surgery) which is due at the pre-op visit. This amount is used to cover the costs of services performed that are not fully covered by insurance. IMPORTANT: (These are my own personal opinions and observations and in no way are meant to represent the intent or purpose of The Wish Center).