Mia S., Austin, TX: “I was supposed to have my hysterectomy at the Baylor Scott & White hospital in Texas. The quote I got from them for the overnight stay in the hospital was $38,000. That wasn’t including surgery.”

“I had an accident showing a home in July. I slipped and fell, tearing my hamstring off of my pelvis bone. When I had an MRI for the injury, a fibroid was discovered that was the equivalent to being 4 months pregnant. The surgeon for my leg said that, while these are normal, I should have it looked at, but that I needed to focus on getting my leg fixed in the 10-day window before it was too late. I had surgery for my leg and spent the month of August learning how to walk again, with the goal to get healthy enough so that I could have a hysterectomy.”

CHALLENGING HIGH HOSPITAL COSTS FOR HYSTERECTOMY

“The Austin doctor I was referred to was going to perform robotic surgery which would have left me with scars and had a hefty price tag. I just paid for my leg surgery. With that knowledge, I realized they were planning to charge me twice as much for the stay. I told them I don’t need to stay in the hospital, it should be a one day deal. They said that they would have me on observation only to keep costs down. I thought it was ridiculous. Keep in mind, I already had a sense of what the cost should be based on my proximal hamstring surgery.”

“I asked the financial person at Baylor Scott & White what the cash price was for the surgery, and she said it’s the same price. I said no, there’s a different price whether you have insurance or not, that’s crazy. She said ‘We are Baylor Scott & White, we don’t care.’ I said ‘What? You just told me you don’t care about me and I’m your patient. I’m out! Cancel everything.’”

DECIDING TO TRAVEL TO CIGC FROM TEXAS

“It was my mom who found The Center for Innovative GYN Care’s website. I did some research and decided to come to D.C. I enlisted a friend to fly out with me, and it went really smooth. Surgery was at 11 in the morning and I went back to the hotel a couple of hours later. I slept for the rest of the day.”

THE DAY AFTER SURGERY

I was up by 8AM, I looked at my girlfriend and said ‘Let’s go look at some monuments.’ and she said ‘Are you kidding?’ I replied ‘No, I’m not. You’ve never been to D.C., you can’t come here without seeing some monuments.’ We got up and went and checked out monuments until I was tired which was around 7:30 that evening. We came back, I fell asleep and left for home the next day.”

FIBROID REMOVAL AT CIGC

The DualPortGYN technique for hysterectomy and LAAM minimally invasive fibroid removal technique for fertility were developed by the CIGC specialists to improve how women recover from GYN surgery.

DualPortGYN uses two 5mm incisions, one at the bikini line and one at the belly button. Most hysterectomy procedures are completed in under an hour, and patient recovery is about a week. LAAM for fertility uses 2 small incisions, one 5mm incision at the belly button, and another 1.5 inch incision at the bikini line. Recovery is 10 days to 2 weeks for a return to a normal routine, and 3 months to begin trying to conceive. Myomectomy is not recommended for women who are past childbearing.

Strategic placement of tiny incisions through the midline of the abdomen bypass the lateral abdominal muscles completely, allowing for a safer surgery and faster recovery from hysterectomy or myomectomy procedures with minimal pain.

Patients recover faster when surgical procedures are performed thoughtfully with the smallest incisions possible. As laparoscopic surgical technology has evolved, our highly skilled minimally invasive GYN surgeons are able to perform complex procedures using increasingly smaller incisions, while controlling blood loss and improving visibility. These techniques allow laparoscopic procedures to be performed thoroughly, with very low risk of conversion to open procedures.

LIFE AFTER A DUALPORTGYN HYSTERECTOMY

“I’ve heard stories of hysterectomies being horrible. I will say, from having proximal hamstring injury surgery, the DualPortGYN hysterectomy was a cakewalk. I wouldn’t have known about my fibroid if it hadn’t been for the MRI for the injury, but it made sense. I had to go to the restroom all the time, and I didn’t know why. The summer prior I had lost a bunch of weight and my stomach just didn’t look right. At that point, I thought I was just going to be a little chunky in the middle.”

“I have friends now who are asking about having a hysterectomy. I tell them I would do it again in a heartbeat. There was a little glue over both incisions, I was pleasantly surprised. You can’t see the scar. Unless I show you, you can’t tell. And the other incision is so small and low, it’s hidden.”

COMPARING COSTS FOR SURGERY

“When you add together everything out-of-pocket for medical this year, keeping in mind that I don’t have insurance: My leg surgery, hysterectomy, including the flight there and back, my hotel, rental car, incidentals, and all of my physical therapy for my leg to date, I’ve spent $31,000. That’s why I knew when Baylor Scott & White quoted me $38,000.00 just for the hospital stay, it was wrong.”

LEARN MORE ABOUT SURGERY AT CIGC

CIGC accepts most major insurance. Each CIGC patient can speak with our financial department for specific questions about insurance and costs for their procedure.

BOOK A CONSULTATION

The CIGC state-of-the-art specialists are available at three locations in the DC metro area. Virginia patients can visit the Reston, VA location, and Saturday appointments are available. Maryland offices are located in Rockville, MD and Annapolis, MD.

CIGC is dedicated to providing information and materials for women to help navigate the complicated healthcare system. The CIGC founders, minimally invasive GYN surgical specialists Dr. Paul MacKoul, MD and Dr. Natalya Danilyants, MD, developed their advanced GYN surgical techniques using only two small incisions with patients’ well-being in mind. Dr. Rupen Baxi, MD is a CIGC-trained minimally invasive GYN specialist with extensive fellowship training and a respected speaker and researcher.

Their personalized approach to care helps patients understand their condition and the recommended treatment so that they can have confidence from the very start. Our surgeons have performed over 20,000 GYN procedures and are constantly finding better ways to improve outcomes for patients.

Book a consultation today with Paul MacKoul MD, Natalya Danilyants MD or Rupen Baxi, MD.

Dr. Paul MacKoul Reviews: Vitals | RateMDs | Google | Wellness | UCompare

Dr. Natalya Danilyants Reviews: Vitals | RateMDs | Google | Wellness | UCompare

Dr. Rupen Baxi Reviews: Vitals | RateMDs | Google | HealthGrades | WebMD