Anyone operated on by Dr Walsh?

Web,

I had asked for him to do my RP 4 years & 11 months ago but was told he was all booked up. So I had to settle (HA HA!!) for Dr. Jacob Mostwin who was Dr. Walsh's personal Urologist at the time. He was the smartest and most easy to talk to Doc I had ever met. He must have done a great job because I was dry when my folley came out and had an erection on my 1st try 6 weeks after surgery when he said it was OK. The staff at J.H. was the most profesional I had ever seen at any hospital and supper nice to boot. I can't speek highly enough about them. I would recomend them to anyone facing a RP. I know there are plenty of guys who speak very highly about where they had their surgery and I'm sure there are some great Docs & hospitals around the country. I can only speak for myself and my experiance at J.H. I am sure Dr. Walsh is as good as they say but he also has Urologists all over the place he has trained on Nerve sparring R.P. Good luck my friend, you will shurely be in good hands>

Your friend,

Pete 

Odysseus -
First of all, good luck on your journey! (had to add that with your name!),
We were also told that he was 'booked up" and his interview with Charlie Rose had just happened but I have one of those wives that just gets things done. We got in for a consultation within a few weeks in May. He had a quick spot in June but I had other issues with a dying parent and so he said August was when he was scheduling and I chose a date. Neither he nor Dr Carter take any insurance. We have bc/bs that covers 80% out of network and Hopkins will do the paper work for you- they just don't want to bend to any insurance company's rules. Interestingly, the docs are all salaried and don't make more money the more operations they perform. Their secretaries at Hopkins should give you all the information you need. There is a billing department there in the urology department.
I certainly can't speak for what coverage you have, but if you have options, I might consider upping the coverage this Fall when most of us have that opportunity, to a top level plan that does cover 80% out of network and just biting that bullet for the year to get this procedure done and roll it back next year. Schedule the procedure for the Winter. _I don;t know if this is legal or ethical and I would feel terrible if I were suggesting cheating a health insurance company! As to canceling a surgery from your Richmond Doc- i would guess that these guys are all used to that. You need to look out for yourself.
I did find research (I believe by Carter) that said waiting for a short time with low grade cancer like you and I have (hopefully!) effects nothing in the cure rate. I waited a year and we will see how the pathology is after my operation (fingers crossed - knocking on wood)

Dr Ballentine Carter was the first surgeon that I consulted with at Hopkins and he is also well respected. He supplies graphs of stats of his patients through the years and it is impressive as well as pages of patients you can call. He is brusk and to the point - don't look for a shoulder to cry on, but very qualified. He is very published, as you may know if you have been doing the research.
Hopkins is the number one Urology hospital again - having developed the procedure and many tests, and Walsh has done over 4000 of these operations. Looking at the videos of the procedure, I am just overwhelmed with how complicated it is with so many tiny blood vessels and bloody tubes and whatnot to deal with inside - and I really think you want a guy who has done many, many (multiplied as many times as possible) of these at the helm. I'm 1/2 hour from Hopkins but people fly from around the world for this. Living in the industrialized NE USA may have its disadvantages, but it does have Hopkins! If I were you, I would try to wrangle a way in.
All that being said, there is certainly no guarantee and I will feel great if I come out of this thing - first of all cancer free and then better if I can hold my pee in reasonable amount of time and even better if I can get hard again. I hope I have helped somewhat. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Good luck

Greetings, Odysseus.  I live in Richmond and had my surgery done at St Marys by Dr. Bill Morgan of Virginia Urology.  I too was advised to go to Johns Hopkins and get a second opinion/consult with either Dr Walsh or Dr Partain.  I am sure they are great doctors with great reputations and JH is a very fine facility.  However, I was very comfortable with Dr. Morgan after he spent an hour or so with us in our initial consultation.  My surgery went great and I have had very few issues with either incontinence or ed.  The entire practice from nurses to PAs to the doc's are great.  I suppose if everything hadn't turned out like it has I would have wished that I had gotten the second opinion at JH but as it is, I am very satisfied with my experience.  My family and friends are here in Richmond and it was great to have them close by during hospital stay (2 days) and recovery. 

As far as cost is concerned, St Mary's charged about $25,000 and my insurance paid them about $8,000.  Dr Morgan charged about $2,500 and my insurance paid him about $2,000.  The labs/pathologists charged about $2,000 and my insurance paid them something less than $1,000.  My out of pocket was a grand total of $250. 

 I'd be glad to talk with you if you would like.  My personal email is [email protected].  David

Yes, Dr. Walsh did my surgery. He is excellent, as is JHH. The only thing that I am unhappy about is erectile disfunction. I expected to be much better than I am one year out. I can answer any specific question you like. I suggest getting his book and reading it end to end before surgery.