How unusual is this ?

[bigwedgie]

Hello everyone, I have been lurking on this site for a while and my wife decided that after forty odd years of dieting surgery may be able to help her finally lose the weight.

Having twice followed all of the NHS programmes only to have funding denied at the last moment she was at an all time low weight wise, we live in Staffordshire and have been told that although the N.I.C.E. guidelines are satisfied the P.C.T. have added additional hurdles that she does not meet.

With this in mind we decided that we would privately fund the operation, we figured that the money was in the bank and the interest rate is nothing, the benefit would be well worth the nine grand investment

So, two weeks ago on Saturday we turned up ready for a new and exciting journey to begin

Off to surgery and i wait , an hour later and she's back but with some bad news ! Under lapascopic examination it turns out that there is a "very very" large hernia that no one was aware of and that could not be fixed at the time .

Can I ask if anyone else has any experience of this ? I have searched the web but can find no one who has had this discovered at the point of surgery

Also , what would readers think is a reasonable amount to be offered as a refund ? I'm aware that it was private and she did have the surgeon, anestetic and a days room to recover in, I'm aware that there was a consultation before the operation etc but the surgery was not completed .

Im not blaming anyone , it was a shock to everyone but you can imagine how disappointed she is right now ... What would you think a reasonable refund might be ?

On the plus side the surgeon is on the board of our local NHS hospital so we may at last have achieved our goal of an NHS funded sleeve even if we will have to endure a six month wait .

I'm interested to hear your thoughts particularly if you have had experience of abandoned surgery mid flow .

 

[top_kat]

THe lady in the room next to me (I had a band fitted privately) had a hernia repaired at the time of her band fitting - she wasn't aware of it either. As for refunds etc, I honestly do not know how or where you stand - they may charge for an incomplete surgery . . .

 

[bigwedgie]

Thanks top cat , I think it's quite common to have a hernia repair fixed during the sleeve but my other half got neither sleeve or hernia repair done which I think is extremely rare

 

[tealovingsleever]

I would suggest reading the t&c's of your paperwork.

 

[susan1962]

Hello everyone, I have been lurking on this site for a while and my wife decided that after forty odd years of dieting surgery may be able to help her finally lose the weight.

Having twice followed all of the NHS programmes only to have funding denied at the last moment she was at an all time low weight wise, we live in Staffordshire and have been told that although the N.I.C.E. guidelines are satisfied the P.C.T. have added additional hurdles that she does not meet.

With this in mind we decided that we would privately fund the operation, we figured that the money was in the bank and the interest rate is nothing, the benefit would be well worth the nine grand investment

So, two weeks ago on Saturday we turned up ready for a new and exciting journey to begin

Off to surgery and i wait , an hour later and she's back but with some bad news ! Under lapascopic examination it turns out that there is a "very very" large hernia that no one was aware of and that could not be fixed at the time .

Can I ask if anyone else has any experience of this ? I have searched the web but can find no one who has had this discovered at the point of surgery

Also , what would readers think is a reasonable amount to be offered as a refund ? I'm aware that it was private and she did have the surgeon, anestetic and a days room to recover in, I'm aware that there was a consultation before the operation etc but the surgery was not completed .

Im not blaming anyone , it was a shock to everyone but you can imagine how disappointed she is right now ... What would you think a reasonable refund might be ?

On the plus side the surgeon is on the board of our local NHS hospital so we may at last have achieved our goal of an NHS funded sleeve even if we will have to endure a six month wait .

I'm interested to hear your thoughts particularly if you have had experience of abandoned surgery mid flow .

Hi , I've a hernia and having my bypass in next 6 months on NHS at Sunderland , I wanted the sleeve but bcoz of hernia has been advised that the bypass would b better , good luck and hope ur wife gets sorted soon xx

 

[borogirl]

Hi a hernia was found at my gastroscopy and because of acid dage I had the bypass whereas my preference was the sleeve. My hernia hasn't been fixed but I don't know why as didn't get to speak to a consultant before I was discharged. So waiting for my discharge letter to come. Think hernias are very common. I was shocked as didn't have symptoms such as heartburn.

 

[JoJoTGirl]

I'd be wondering whether they should have spotted the Hernia before surgery to start with but otherwise you will no doubt be bound by the terms and conditions you signed. Was your package an inclusive care package? How very disappointing for your wife and worrying for you too. I wish you both the very best of luck getting things resolved. : (

 

[bigwedgie]

How lovely to get so many replies so quickly, yes it was a full package that we booked as she was originally going for a band but after meeting the consultant we thought the sleeve was a better option . I have looked through the contract and it's specific if you either don't go through with the operation or if the surgery is terminated due to not reducing the liver but there is nothing specifying abandonment of surgery due to unforeseen medical issues discovered during surgery.

The company have already indicated that a refund is due but have not given any idea of the amount, I suppose it will be the amount remaining after all costs have been calculated , which is fine .

And yes, it was a big disappointment at the time but we are a lot more positive now, the surgeon has already seen us and has indicated that he needs more tests involving an endoscopy and a barium meal so that he can decide what's the best option. It seems we are looking at a three to four month delay before further surgery is done.

It's interesting to note that a bypass has been performed on other people who have hernias, I hope we can avoid that if possible I will keep you posted regards , Jon

 

[dottydalmation]

I had a band to bypass privately in July, on the day he found a huge hernia which was repaired. Surgeon told my husband it would have been unethical for him to leave it.? Don't know bout refunds, or rescheduling at a reduced cost.

 

[bigwedgie]

Thanks for all of your useful input most interesting, I'm not certain that she likes the idea of a bypass but we will see ... On the plus side we have been booked in for endoscopy and barium meal so that the surgeon knows what he's facing, apparently the entire stomach and intestine have migrated through the hernia !!

I will keep you posted on the progress

 

[borogirl]

Oh I hope she is ok. I wanted a sleeve but ended up with bypass. After waiting such a long time I started to think both are permanent so either would be fine. Both are an aid to shift this weight.
I hope you both get this sorted soon x

 

[onwards and upwards]

i hope you get sorted

 

[bigwedgie]

Hey, had some great news today, kim got her appointment for the barium meal for next Tuesday and her gastroscopy next Thursday all being done now on the NHS. I dread to think how much it would cost as a private patient !

Best of all the company we booked the surgery with phoned this afternoon and has offered a very acceptable refund .

Overall the future looks very promising

 

[angiemason]

Well done being so positive, I hope everything goes well and she's very lucky to have such great support from you take care both and best of luck

 

[bigwedgie]

Well, today we went to see the main consultant Mr K ( it was at the same place as scooter81 and I kept looking to say hello but didn't see her ) .
Mr K told us that the hernia repair involved using a mesh and that if the sleeve was done at the same time and subsequently leaked onto the mesh there was likely to be some major problems as a result, we asked about alternative bariatric operations but a band couldn't be done because the mesh is stitched where a band needs to go , a sleeve or a bypass is apparently too risky due to leakage so she was really disappointed and it was not what either of us was hoping to hear .

Apparently there is some leading expert due to see him in early June and he said he would be taking advice and asking about bariatric surgery in patients who present with large hiatus hernias and that we should see him again in June

I suppose we should be grateful that he says that he didn't want to risk making Kim's quality of life worse by combining the two procedures and he also said that this was a rare case but it really has been a bit upsetting for us both in fact it is the worst thing for kim . I remain positive and hope that in June he can offer some sort of solution, on the upside, at least we are getting treated by the NHS because it would be thousands by now if it was private.

Also , I have to say that the service and treatment we have had has been really excellent , anyway, enough of my rambling , bless you for reading only there is nowhere else I can really tell these things and I'm hoping someone may have advice or experience of something similar . Night !