Ruary O'Connell Bariatric Surgeon M.D., F.A.C.S.

I found Dr. O'Connell very down to earth and VERY helpful. He is concerned about his patients. I am impressed and I've heard NOTHING but positive things about his surgical skills and after care.

Dr O'Connell and Dr. Mandu of Renew WLS clinic in New Orleans LA, have a complete program, pysch, social, support, nutrion, physical, the works, they took such good care of me, and even give all their patients their beeper #'s it was well worth the trip and they are the best. I love them both dearly and couldn't have found better people to put my life in their hands. I found them off the asbs.org site. (American Society for Bariatric Surgons. I recommend everyone look there first.

saw Dr. O'Connell last week......was very informative....had seen him 2 yrs ago but was denied by my ins. at that time.....plan to self pay if i am denied again......was very nice...took time to answer questions...he is hopeful that insurance will approve now.....we'll see!

I met with Dr. O'Connell in March after my previous surgeon's bariatric services were discontinued by my insurance company. My visit with Dr. O'Connell was brief (probably because I already knew a lot about the surgery and came to him by referral of the other surgeon), but within one week I was approved for surgery. I've attended an orientation/support group session where we met post-op patients and were able to ask them questions. Then our group met with Dr. O'Connell and he answered our questions for over an hour. So far, I'm very much impressed with his personal manner and the way he takes time out of his busy schedule to personally attend the support groups.

I met a group of very nice people in Dr. O'Connell's office today that shared their personal stories with me about their surgeries. It was very helpful to hear the pros and cons of this surgery, as well as seeing the results of weight lose in these people waiting for post-op checkups. I was nervous about meeting Dr. O'Connell,but after meeting him I felt very comfortable. He is a very sweet, as well as humorious man. He was kind and caring and answered all my questions.I was told in the waiting area by two people that have had the surgery that Dr. O doesn't like to perform or suggest LAP on his patients,but he told me that Lap was the best surgery for me (I didnt even have to ask). I was happy with that. I have a support group meeting at the end of the month , as well as a phy. exam. After this I will schedule surgery at Pendleton hosp.
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Well I attended the support group. Everyone was very helpful and I felt comfortable. I also had a Phy. Exam with Dr. Cathy Mcgregor (hope i spelled it right?:) . She is sooooo sweet and funny! I felt very at ease with her. The test was quit long (500 or so questions)and asked some strange questions but all in all it was ok. As a matter of fact--I wished I lived in La and I would see her regular just to talk with about all the emotional problems that go along with this process and life:)
Now I need to "pass" my exam and set a date! YES!
Will update later
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Consultation scheduled for Wed. 1/24/01
_______________ 1/25/01 : Well ... I met with Dr. O'Connell yesterday for my first appointment. I had done some research on him and read a little about him from previous patients. I was totally prepared for this "Non-mushy, dry personality, extremely busy doctor" everyone had described. While I did find he was rushed, he was extremely personable, even cracked a few jokes and was willing to answer all of our questions. (Even when my over-protective husband stopped him half-way out the door to ask more questions). He's well-spoken, competent, personable, honest and no non-sense. Quite frankly, he was what you'd hope for in a doctor. Sorry .... for years I've had people blow smoke up my butt about "looking good for being so big" .... you really need a surgeon who's not gonna b.s. you about risks, complications, preferred surgical procedures, insurance hold ups and dedicated follow-up care. All patients are required to come for regular check-ups which include seeing the surgeon, the RN, the social worker and the nutritionist. Everyone works together to ensure you get the best possible care and that all of your questions are answered.

I didn't have a very good first impression of Dr. O'Connell. I kind of got the feeling that he thought I was an idiot and didn't know what I was talking about. I may have been acting like an idiot I was so scared and nervous going in for my consultation. He didn't explain anything to me, I had thought he was going to go over the whole procedure with me but all he did was ask me a bunch of questions, and tell me that I needed to get a sleep test done. However, he does seem to know what he is doing and I have talked to many of his patients and they all seem to love him so maybe we'll develop more of a doctor/patient relationship as time goes on. His office staff seemed very nice and also seems to know what they are doing. I guess what I like least about Dr. O'Connell, was that he kind of held off on information. I think future patients should know that if they don't seem to click with him on the first visit to wait and see what happens. Aftercare is a MAJOR, MAJOR, MAJOR part of his plan, if you don't plan on doing aftercare, then don't bother to see Dr. O'Connell. Surgical competence is overall the most important, but it's nice to have a Doc with a good bedside manner too!

He's a great doctor and really knowledgeable. I went to one of the support group meetings and he was there. He answered questions for about an hour and it all made sense. I really look forward to attending other meetings after my surgery. His Aftercare program will make all the difference.

I had my first visit with Dr. O'Connell today. I absolutely love him! He is comfortable to talk to and really seems to like his patients and is confident in what he does. He has a wonderful sense of humor. I did not have much time to ask all questions that I had because they are very busy but he said he would address them at the group meeting so that everyone could hear the answers. Aftercare is terribly important and they stress this ALOT. Just sitting in the waiting room and talking to everyone who had surgery made me more comfortable in choosing Dr. O'Connell. They all had good things to say and were all so very positive. The staff is incredibly efficient and all seem to know what their job is and they do it. I have no complaints so far. I would rate him extremely sensitive to the plight of the obese, wonderful bedside manner, and totally competent. If this changes over time, I will certainly post.

Dr. O'Connell is great! He has a great sense of humor and terrific bedside manner. His staff is very professional and ready to help. I really like his program. The aftercare program / support group meetings are just the thing to help you keep on track, a place to ask questions, and be with people who have traveled the same road as you. It is more important to me to have surgical competence than bedside manner but Dr. O'Connell is the best of both worlds.