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Mt. Sinai in NY VS .Robert Wood Johnson in NJ?

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 9/26/2014 11:53 PM (GMT 0)
So does anybody have any insight as to which of these two is better for J-Pouch surgery? A top GI in NJ highly recommends Dr. Rezac at Robert Wood Johnson. But I also know Mt. Sinai is excellent also. Thoughts...

Post Edited (Dura-Ace) : 9/27/2014 7:53:35 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 9/27/2014 1:38 AM (GMT 0)
Robert wood is a great hosptial but for j pouch surgery I would go with mt. Sinai if you're choosing between the two. Dr. Bauer at mt Sinai is supposedly one of the best. I live in NJ and ended up having my j pouch surgery at Jefferson university hospital in Philly. I was really impressed with them and my surgeon was awesome. Of course though you should interview a few before making a decision.
Posted 9/27/2014 11:40 AM (GMT 0)
I honestly have never heard of anyone having a j-pouch done at RWJ. My concern would be with volume -- people travel to NYC (Mt Sinai and Cornell, where I had my surgery) from all over the East coast to have their j-pouches done, so the surgeons there see a lot of them. If the volume isn't as high at RWJ, I would be concerned about their level of experience and the care you would get there (for example, the nurses on the ward at Cornell all knew a lot about j-pouches and post-op care... nurses I've seen at other hospitals don't even know what a j-pouch is).

If it's a lot more convenient for you I would do a consult with the surgeon at RWJ and ask how many j-pouches he's done in his career and how often he does them now. I wouldn't use a surgeon who has done fewer than 200 pouches or who does less than a few a month.
Posted 9/27/2014 2:41 PM (GMT 0)

Pluot said...
I honestly have never heard of anyone having a j-pouch done at RWJ

They actually do quite a few there. I spoke to someone who had their surgery there and had a positive experience. That's why it's important to do interviews. You don't necessarily have to drive hundreds of miles to get a great surgeon. But yeah, in the end I went with who did the most!
Posted 9/29/2014 5:48 PM (GMT 0)
Dura-Ace,

I can't comment on the Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center since I have never been there but I have been to both Mount Sinai and NYP Cornell. I had my surgeries at NYP Cornell.

I was very happy with the surgeries at NYP Cornell, the surgeon, his team, the nursing staff (they were great) and especially the facilities which are very new and all private rooms. They have a whole floor dedicated to Gastro Surgery Patients.

The reason that I went with NYP Cornell was that my GI moved from Mt Sinai to NYP Cornell AND the surgeon that I want to use at NYP accepted my insurance.

I have stayed at Mount Sinai for UC flares in the past and they were great there, especially the Gastro Nurses but the place wasn't run as well as NYP, I had to wait much longer for tests, transport, the rooms were not as clean, etc... They do have great surgeons there but when I was there many of them did not accept insurance.
Posted 9/30/2014 11:10 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the responses everyone. I can use more inputs.
Posted 10/1/2014 12:45 AM (GMT 0)
There's also the Cleaveland clinic. It's a trip but they do TONS of j pouches so if you're not opposed to traveling, they are a great option.
Posted 10/1/2014 4:52 PM (GMT 0)
If you haven't all ready visited Jpouch.org then you might want to check it out. You can get more input there.

If you have family in the NY area then it might be easier to stay local for everyone, Remember that you'll probably need 2 or 3 surgeries and follow up visits after each surgery which will add up to a lot of trips to Cleveland. There is not a better place than the Cleveland Clinic to have surgery but you can get excellent care in NYC. Also Cleveland may not be in your insurance network since it is out of state.

My problem with NYC is that many of the Top CR Surgeons in NYC do not accept any insurance which is a huge PITA. I had surgery with the Chief Surgeon at NYP Cornell and he did accept a limited number of plans, thankful mine was one of them. He is very skilled and did an excellent job on my surgeries.

You have lots of options and all of them are good ones.
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