News Story About Bad Care in Mexico

This is very disturbing to me. I guess just because a surgeon has a big reputation that doesn't mean they are ethical and take care of their patients or that they are even nice people! This is very sad.

I know that complications happen. I believe that it says a lot about a surgeon in how they handle their complications. I think it's terrible that Ortiz ignored this woman. It appears that he could care less and he refuses to own up.

Why can't these surgeons be stand up guys and just admit they made a mistake and fix it?! This poor lady doesn't deserve the treatment she received! Or didn't receive!

Here is the link.

http://www.katu.com/news/medicalalert/34222379.html

Here is a link to the video story.

http://www.katu.com/news/medicalalert/34222379.html?video=YHI&t=a

sounds to me like just one side of the story, I had surgery in Mexico. If I had complacations I would go back there to the Dr. that did my surgery. Did she even give him a chance? the artical doesn't say. Oh and have you heard all the Horror stories that people have about US Dr. and hospitals. I just say do your homework. And if the US didn't over charge so much for medical I think we all would have had it done here. But for now that's just not the case.

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Band Date:7/22/08 2 Fills 4.4cc

Take a look at the video. There is more information shown there. http://www.katu.com/news/medicalalert/34222379.html?video=YHI&t=a

She did try to reach to Ortiz. He didn't return her calls. It shows the reporter trying to reach the clinic. His calls were not returned either. They also interviewed the surgeon who took out her band. He tried to reach the clinic to get her records and had someone on his team "that speaks fluent Spanish" contact the clinic. Ortiz ignored them too.

You are right about US doctors. This doesn't just happen in Mexico. I want to make it clear that I'm not implying this is a Mexico problem because it's not! This is a problem with a surgeon not responding to his patient with complications!

I'll agree. I guess it depends on your Doc, mine gave me a copy of my records and all exrays and test results and a detailed report on the surgery it self before I even left mexico just incase I had any trouble and had to see a US Doc

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Band Date:7/22/08 2 Fills 4.4cc

This is the first time I've read anything negative about Dr. Ortiz. I'm getting banded by him on the 26th. So far everything I've read and heard has been positive, so this comes as a surprise.

Ortiz is very PR savvy so I have trouble believing he would not respond to a news story and ignore a patient.

Okay, I just watched the clip. She is trying to get her money back for the first surgery and get him to pay for her second surgery. This is completely different than her calling him to say her band was hurting and them refusing to do anything. Slippage is a known complication from a band and can be caused by patient non-compliance and no US doctor would do what she is asking either.

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I agree with PPs regarding Ortiz's PR savvy-ness. He may lack in the aftercare department... but I don't think he'd just ignore a patient. JMHO.

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-Katy
"When you know better, you DO better!"
-Maya Angelou
Banded 10/22/07 Dr. Ariel Ortiz
Follow-Up Care by Dr. Mark Pleatman

Pre-Op: Size 18/20 Current: Size 8
235/147/143 (Pre-Op/Current/Goal)

This was my thinking as well. From his website and his CV which he has posted online, my feeling is that he cares about his reputation. It doesn't make sense that someone who is frequently in the media would just ignore a patient. Not to take anything away from the patient's experience, but there is always two sides to a story, and any media angle on it has to be taken with a grain of salt.

You know, it's dangerous in the USA or elsewhere. I personally feel the USA is better if only because we can sue the turkeys if they mess us up! :) I grew up in El Paso and even many Mexican Nationals....good friends etc, would not even get a cut treated in Mexico. Not to paint the whole country and every doctor over there with the same negative brush. I think the important thing is to do thorough research as best you can, make sure you have great after-care lined up, and then roll the dice.

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PCM 7/3/08 Seminar 7/10/08
Upper Gi, Psych,Nutrition, Surgeon 7/25
Tricare Approved 7/31
1st surgery 8/11 fatty liver no band
Banded 8/29/08!!! BY:
Dr. Sonny Cavazos, Texas Bariatric

Yet many people who grew up in the US who live near the border regularly go into Mexico for treatment. You get a lot more personal care there than here for a cheaper price.

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Maybe...when I was growing up in El Paso we didn't go over there for medical care. I know some recently who've gone for drugs, but not medical care. But different border cities have different, um, auras?
Anyway the point is, regardless of WHERE you go, to research, research, and use your gray matter. There are good and bad doctors everywhere; no one place has the market cornered on either.

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PCM 7/3/08 Seminar 7/10/08
Upper Gi, Psych,Nutrition, Surgeon 7/25
Tricare Approved 7/31
1st surgery 8/11 fatty liver no band
Banded 8/29/08!!! BY:
Dr. Sonny Cavazos, Texas Bariatric

You will note that the US doctor does not say the band was placed incorrectly; that is an assumption the reporter made. The MD only noted that it had slipped. That does happen, and only rarely because the surgeon has made a mistake. So I'm not sure what he is supposed to be owning up to. She didn't go back to him, so I don't see what he was supposed to "fix" either.

There's a lot we don't know that we are given to believe we do know about what has happened. For instance, we don't know if Dr Ortiz has talked to this patient numerous times already. I have had no difficulty in getting my medical records from his office for insurance purposes. They don't always call me back right away, and I have to follow up sometimes, but neither do my US doctors. My husband has gone through hell and about 10 phone calls just trying to get a prescription renewed that his US doctor messed up, for thyroid medication (not like it was a controlled substance he was trying to get!) he absolutely has to take in a timely manner.

And finally, I don't know of any US doctors that will just fork the money for surgery back over to the patient because there is a complication. Sorry, it just doesn't work that way, in the US or anywhere else. And it doesn't sound like she went back down to his clinic to have him check out her problems.

Dr Ortiz gives out his cell phone number to his patients. I'm wondering why they didn't try to call him directly.

Like most TV news stories, this is lacking in information and is trying to be sensational. I used to work for the government and have seen a number of news stories that are incredibly full of incorrect information, so I'm not entirely buying this one without a lot more info. As someone said before, I have seen very, very few negative stories about Dr Ortiz, and he has done thousands of lap bands. The bad surgeons seem to leave a trail of horror stories on the internet, and I haven't seen that with Ortiz.

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Banded 10/10/07
Dr Ortiz, Tijuana

I personally think that it doesn't matter if it the slip was Ortiz's fault or the patient's fault. He should not ignore her. The story said she tried to contact him for a year. How was she suppose to go back to him to get checked when he didn't call her back?

I don't think it matters if the doctor is Mexican or if he is American. A doctor should not ignore a patient that has a complication and tried to call him!

I have contacted the news station to try to get in touch with this person. I'm interested in learning more.

My point is that we don't really know she has been trying to contact him for a year. I'm saying my experiences with this clinic have been very different from what she describes, and I've been there five or six times. You can walk right in there anytime, and they will help you and you can talk to a doctor.

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Banded 10/10/07
Dr Ortiz, Tijuana

She tried to contact him AFTER she went to a US hospital and had her band removed. She was contacting him to get money, not to get treatment.

The story never said she called him before her band was removed and I think that's telling.

And I say this as someone who wouldn't use Ortiz myself, mainly because I think his operation is run a bit too much like a factory. But as far as I know and have seen, it's a competent factory and people don't take their lives in their hands when they go to him and he is responsive to his patients.

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