California Surgery Reviews

What CHD does/did your child have? :: HRHS

Where was your child's surgery done? :: Loma Linda University

Who did the surgery? :: Norwood - Dr Leonard Bailey(3-24-06) Glenn- Dr. Anees J. Razzouk(9-28-06)

When was the surgery done? :: Mar 24 2006

What did you think of the hospital and staff? :: They are awesome. The staff on 5800 was so good to our family. Because my daughter had many admissions, I got to know them all real well. The doctors are also so very caring and make sure that you understand completely. I can't say enough about the staff that helped our little girl!

What did you think of the surgeon? :: They are both so great. Dr. Bailey was to do her Glenn, but she got sick and it had to be postponed and so Dr. Razzouk did it. They made sure that they communicated with each other on everything that was going on with her.

Would you take your child back to this facility/surgeon? :: Most definitely!

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? :: There is Ronald McDonald house across the street for families that don't live close. The hospital staff is helpful and the surgeons that they have on staff are the best. Dr. Bailey is known around the world!

What was done to correct this CHD? BT shunt 1/08/03 and full TOF open heart repair 3/20/03

Where was your child's surgery done? Loma Linda University Children's Hospital in Loma Linda, CA

What did you think of the hospital and staff? The staff at Loma Linda, especially Irene Hoch, the cardiac surgery coordinator, is amazing. Irene called us every week for months after his surgery to check in and answer our questions. The hospital itself was very comfortable and clean and had good services for families.

What did you think of the surgeon? Dr. Bailey is AWESOME. In addition to being a talented surgeon he is also very gentle and caring and answered all our questions and we could tell he really cared about Iain.

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? I HIGHLY recommend this facility and surgeon. Also recommend our peds cardiologist Dr. Mohammad Kanakriyeh who is affiliated with the hospital. The cardiac ICU phone # is (909) 558-8500 in case anyone is interested.

What CHD does/did your child have? :: double inlet left ventricle single entry or what is called a DKS

Where was your child's surgery done? :: LOMA LINDA CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL, LOMA LINDA CALIFORNIA

What did you think of the hospital and staff? :: THEY WERE WONDERFUL AND THE HOSPITAL AND SURGEON ARE WORLD KNOW OF CARDIOTHORACIC SURGERY

What did you think of the surgeon? :: HE IS A LIFE SAVER. HE HAS OPERATED ON MY SON 5 TIMES IN 3 YEARS. I WOULD HAVE BEEN LOST WITHOUT HIM THERE. HE EXPLAINED EVERYTHING IN LAME IN TERMS SO I COULD UNDERSTAND WHAT WAS HAPPENING TO MY LITTLE BOY.

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? :: ALWAYS ASK QUESTIONS LET HIM KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW SO THAT HE CAN KEEP YOU INFORMED

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? I am use to Doernbecher Children's Hospital and am very excited that they are now able to do infant heart transplants. I only wish that were the case when we had our little baby girl there in October. Since that was not the case and we were sent out of State to California, I would urge any family to make sure they are well informed about the hospital as possible. We have a 9 year old son who loves his baby sister. When we arrived at Loma Linda, he was not allowed to see her until he met with a team of social workers and even after that meeting, the hospital's policy is that any child under the age of 15 is only allowed supervised visits 2x a week for 15 to 20 minutes at a time. That did so much damage to my son I can't even begin to tell you. That hospital was not family oriented like the referring hospital thought they were.

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Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA (Los Angelas)

What CHD does/did your child have? Bicuspid Aortic Valve, Coarctation of the aorta, Dilatation of the aorta.

What was done to correct this CHD? The only CHD repaired so far is coarctation of the aorta. It was surgically repaired.

Where was your child's surgery done? UCLA

Who did the surgery? Dr. Hillel Laks

When was the surgery done? June 6, 2002 at 5 weeks of age

What did you think of the hospital and staff? Incredible, the best the experience could have been.

What did you think of the surgeon? Amazing... not much bedside manner, but he's a genius, I didn't care about his inability to talk to us- he performed the miracle on our daughter's heart.

Would you take your child back to this facility/surgeon? Absolutely.

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? Never settle for less than the best. This is serious stuff!

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Children's Hospital, Central California (Madera)

What CHD does/did your child have? Tetralogy of Fallot

What was done to correct this CHD? Placement of donor pulmonary valve, widening of pulmonary branches

Where was your child's surgery done? Children's Hospital, Central California which is in Madera, California (near Fresno)

Who did the surgery? Surgery #1 - Dr. Malcolm MacDonald, Dr. Ed Petrossian

Surgery #2 - Dr. Malcolm MacDonald, Dr. Frank Hanley

When was the surgery done? Surgery #1 1-4-04, Surgery #2 10-11-04

What did you think of the hospital and staff? Very caring and qualified staff. The hospital is only about 5 yrs. old, very nice and clean. The Ronald MacDonald House next door is one of the nicest around!

What did you think of the surgeon? Dr. MacDonald is very caring and very qualified. He makes it a point to see his patients and parents EVERYDAY, usually more than once a day, throughout your entire stay. He really seems to take a vested interest in each of his patients. There is excellent communication between dr.'s and parents.

Would you take your child back to this facility/surgeon? Yes

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? We had the choice of going to this hospital or UCLA and we chose this one. It is a wonderful facility located in a quiet, yet nice area of California. The doctors and staff have been excellent and treated us well. I would make sure that the surgeon goes over all aspects of the surgery including risks associated with surgery.

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Children's Hospital and Research Center Oakland

What CHD does/did your child have? Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome

What was done to correct this CHD? Norwood, Bi-Directional Glenn, Fontan

Where was your child's surgery done? Children's Hospital and Research Center Oakland

Who did the surgery? Performed by LeNardo Thompson (surgical team with Dr. Frank Hanley)

When was the surgery done? Norwood at 3 days old, (8/98), Glenn at 3 months old (11/98), Fontan at 3 years old (7/01)

What did you think of the hospital and staff? The hospital is a county hospital and the accommidations are sparse but the staff and the care were excellent.

What did you think of the surgeon? Our surgeon is undoubtedly a miracle worker. I could not imagine a more brilliant, skilled and humble surgeon

Would you take your child back to this facility/surgeon? Absolutely. I intend on coming back to this team throughout Jack's life even though we no longer live in California

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? The team at this hospital is at the forefront of pediatric cardiology. The Fontan is done with the extra-cardiac conduit. The surgical team travels to the 4 major hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area. I can't imagine a better team to treat my son.

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What CHD does/did your child have? My son had a single ventricle and a repaired coarctation of his aorta.

What was done to correct this CHD? He had his coarctation repaired with a piece of his own pericardium and a pulmonary artery band placed to reduce the pressure of the blood flow to his lungs in his first operation. He developed heart block a few days later and had to have a pacemaker placed. His next surgery was the Bidirectional Glenn and his final corrective surgery will be the Fontan

Where was your child's surgery done? He had his surgeries performed at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco California

Who did the surgery? Dr. Michael Black

When was the surgery done? His first one was done March 2004. The pacemaker was inserted April 2004. The Glenn was done November 2004.

What did you think of the hospital and staff? They were amazing!!! I got to stay in the hospital with my son the whole time. I was also provided with meals because I was a breastfeeding mother. The staff were all very friendly and wonderfully nice. I can't say enough good things about them or they way they treated us.

What did you think of the surgeon? Dr. Black is a wonderful human being. He has a great bedside manner and is great with children. He is very willing to explain things a million times and will listen to the concerns of the parents. He is readily available and will come at a moment's notice if anything is even slightly wrong.

Would you take your child back to this facility/surgeon? I have and I will.

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon? They have a great program here and the care that you will get is top notch.

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University of California, San Francisco

What CHD does/did your child have? Pulmonary atresia

What was done to correct this CHD? Balloon valvuloplasty 2x

Where was your child's surgery done? UCSF, CA

Who did the surgery? Drs David Teitel and Phillip Moore

When was the surgery done? 1999

What did you think of the hospital and staff?

Hospital was excellent. Staff was OK. Nurses were not informative regarding the hospital amenities (like telling me that they had nursing rooms), nor where they observant as to what was causing my child physical pain (did not notice a quarter size chemical burn mark on a foot).

What did you think of the surgeon? Very good

Would you take your child back to this facility/surgeon? Yes

Any advice for others looking at this facility/surgeon?

Be assertive with the nurses to make sure that your child's needs are being met, as well as yours.