"I haven't met Dr. Appel yet, but he performed surgery on my cousin four years ago and on a recently discovered friend of mine several years ago. Both say that he is not warm and fuzzy, has a lousy bedside manner, but is a brilliant surgeon. As for me, I just want to live through this and experience the full benefits of the surgery. I have kids and a hubby for comic relief, so I'm going with him on this one! Kathy is the insurance coordinator. I was frustrated because it took so long to get in touch with her (oh..okay...four days..but who's counting?). She was great once I got her on the phone!*UPDATE*..I met Dr Appel on 11/30 and he was WONDERFUL! He was very direct..doesn't sugar coat anything...but he definately DID Have a sense of humor :)..My favorite...When someone said "What about sex?"..He said "What about it?"..She said "How Long?" (meaning how long until sex was allowed post op)...Dr. Appel quipped "About 25 minutes!"...I cracked up...maybe you had to be there *shrugs*..Anyway...he's great!
I am now 3 months post-op and I can't say enough about what a skilled surgeon Dr.Appel is. The longer I am his patient, the more he warms up. My last appt., he drew a graph of my weight loss so far and seemed almost as happy as me with the results. He is quick and to the point, not a hand holder, but I had complications in my surgery due to my abdominal adhesions and he handled them brilliantly. I would use him again anytime! And, I frequently recommend him to others. His is process probably takes 9-12 months now because he is so in demand, but he is worth the wait if surgical competence is your main concern. He was recently highlighted in an Atlanta magazine as one of the top ten surgeons in the city! Now, in a city this big...that's saying something!"
