Tim Farrell Bariatric Surgeon M.D.

Dr. Farrell is not your typical surgeon. He is warm and understanding. His staff was wonderful. Karen was always there to answer questions. Both his competence and his bedside manner were fantastic. When I had my surgery, much of the testing had to be done \"disjointedly\". His program had you take care of your own testing instead of providing it through his office. rnrnThe only big negative is where he practices. UNC-CH Hospital has all the aspects of a large, impersonal teaching hospital. Staffing is not great on the hospital floor.

I have only met with Dr. Farrell once. This was after approval and after all medical tests were done. This process took a very long time. I have coronary artery disease so I had to have an updated catherization. I had blood tests, psychological evaluation, met with the nutritionist and the physical therapists at UNC-CH. I think he covered ever aspect beforehand. My surgery was scheduled for Jan 12, but it has been moved up to Dec 8. I am very anxious and excited. On the other hand I wonder what it will be like after surgery. I have asked many questions and have gotten quite candid answers from Dr. Farrell and his nurse, Karen Colton. I think she walks on water. She is so patient. It has taken me 2 years to get to this point.

Met with Dr Farrell today and feel great about our time. He had the right blend of professionalism and having a positive and caring bedside manner. He spent as much time as needed explaining the procedure and sharing risks and expectations. He was candid when answering questions and shared was has been done to solve problems and reduce risks. A surgery date has been set and we are only 10 days away.

The GI surgery staff has been positive and available to answer questions and follow up. I have received follow-up calls in a timely manner when I left messages.

So far all of my interactions have been positive.

I haven't yet met with Dr. Farrell, I met with Dr. France who is on his surgical team. I enjoyed meeting Dr. France and all the information he shared with me was clear and easy to understand. He was very clear about the risk and answered all question we had. After insurance approval I will meet with Dr. Farrell.

April 4, 2005
I met Dr. Farrell today and he's a very caring person. He took more than enough time to answer all my questions and ask ones that he felt I should know the answers to. He drew pictures of what is to be done, expressed concerns about blood clots and all the factors involving major surgery. I would recommend Dr. Farrell and his team for anyone who is seeking to have WLS.

April 27, 2005
Each morning after I had my surgery his team would come in to check my status and answer any questions that I may have. They explained everything they did and how everything went. He would come by later in the day to check on me also and inform me of my progress. His surgical competence and bedside manner is great. He makes you feel like a person instead of a number.

I THOUGHT TIM FERRELL WAS FULL OF INFORMATION FROM THE TIME I MET HIM. I KNEW WHAT TO EXPECT AFTER OUR FIRST MEETING. HE EXPLAINED EVERYTHING TO MY FAMILY AS IF THEY WERE HAVING THE SURGERY. HE WAS VERY KIND AND ATTENDING. HE DID NOT RUSH THOUGH OUR APPT. TIMES. HE MADE SURE I UNDERSTOOD ALL THE RISKS. HE DREW ME PICTURES OF WHAT HE WOULD BE DOING. HIS AFTER CARE WAS EXCELLENT TOO. I LOVED HIS NURSE, I CAN STILL CALL HER TODAY AFTER BEING A LITTLE OVER A YEAR OUT OF SURGERY.I RATE HIM HIGH ABOUT A 10. SURGICAL COMPETENCE AND BEDSIDE MANNER ARE EQUALLY IMPORTANT.THE HOSPITAL PERSONEL WASN'T THE BEST. THEIR SERVICE AND NURSES COULD HAVE HAD BETTER PERSONALITIES.( MORE SMILES, A "I'M HAPPY TO BE HERE" PERSONALITY). HOSPITAL I WON'T RATE AS HIGH MAYBE A "C"!

Dr. Farrell was great, very nice to deal with and told me everything I wanted to know. My impression is still the same. The office staff could not be better. His coordinator, Karen, is awesome. The only bad thing is he is booked up a lot. It takes time to get into surgery but well worth the wait. The surgery itself was awesome, the only real lacking they have is the after care support. Not alot of stuff in place, but they are always willing to answer questions. Overall, I would absolutely recommend him for surgery.

I initially saw Dr. Farrell a year before I had my surgery (which was on 4-21-04). I was very impressed with his "total package". He was friendly, knowledgable and had the best bedside manner of any physician I had ever met. He explained the surgery in detail and even drew pictures of the anatomical changes that would be made. He allowed time for us (my husband and myself) to ask questions and answered everything in lay language so that it would be easy to understand (for people who were not medically trained). I explained that I was saving up my PTO time at work so that I could afford to be out of work to have the surgery done and he told me what I would need to have done before scheduling my surgery. I kept in touch with his office periodically during the next year and his RN Coordinator, Karen Colton, was fantastic!!! They helped in every way possible when I began having trouble with my insurance company. I can't say enough wonderful things about Dr. Farrell and his staff. I guess if I were to have anything negative to say it would have to be with the billing office - they are pretty difficult to deal with. I have a very "unique" insurance company and they process things at their own pace...when I asked the billing office to give me some time since I was having difficulty with my insurer about approving my surgery they were unwilling to do this and took part of my income tax return to pay off balances (which I was making payments on regularly). I was dissapointed that this was done since it made it look like I was ignoring my obligation when I was not but what's done is done....now I have a MUCH LARGER balance for them to stress over!!!

I have to change what I had on here because on March 25 2003 I met with Dr.Morton who was suppose to do my surgery but it was changed to Dr.Farell and I only remember seeing him once the morning of surgery can remember what he even looks like but I know he did a good job lol!!And as far as his staff I always deal with Karen Colton shes okay but its hard to get an appt unless its months away thats the only thing I did not like but patience is one of my new year resolutions so I am working on that!But surgery went well and Dr.Farell is kool with me!!!

I cannot say enough wonderful things about Dr. Farrell and the team at UNC. I would recommend them to anyone. I felt that I had the best care in the world. Fantastic nurses, and attentive doctors.

Dr. Farrell, is very polite, very specific in discussing your options, and very candid about the risks.His staff is amazing from the people at the front deak to his right hand nurse.

I was struck first by his obvious concern for me as a person. He was candid about past surgeries and risks involved and how they might relate to my surgery. I was reassured and surprised to meet a surgeon who was compassionate while extremely qualified and yet was humble enough to know (and voice) his own limitations. At that first meeting he gained, not only my respect, but that of a close friend who accompanied me. Through my hospitalization I saw Dr. Farrell each day and, not only did he take the time to listen to my concerns, he addressed those concerns with the proper persons until they were resolved.

There was an initial mix-up with my paperwork and an inept clerical person, but once that issue was resolved, I experienced no problems with his office staff. Karen Coulton (Dr. Farrell's nurse) has always been extremely helpful when I have called.

I have nothing negative to say about Dr. Farrell or his team. The only problems I encountered were with the hospital nursing and nursing aide staff and the food services people who kept bringing me the wrong foods until Dr. Farrell's nutritionist fixed me a couple of meals herself. Dietary caught on for the most part after that!

As I have stated, I was able to see Dr. Farrell each day and he was always supportive and ready to answer my questions or get answers if he did not know the answer. I had done my homework before ever deciding to come to see Dr. Farrell and had all my questions prepared. Dr. Farrell's credentials and status in the UNC Healthcare System are excellent and he demonstrates true compassion for his patients in his desire for them to become truly healthy. As I told him the evening before I went home, a "humble surgeon" is quite the oxymoron and I have been blessed to find one in him. Is Dr. Farrell infallible? By no means. Is he perfect? I don't think so--but more importantly--neither does he. That is the very thing that makes me recommend him without any hesitation.