Dear Sir,
This is in regard to the letter Frank Slater submitted to the March 10 issue of the Guadalajara Reporter. In a heartbreaking letter, Mr. Slater states that he did not receive proper medical care from Doctors Francisco Arroyo Paz, Jorge Nicolas Valladares, Gustavo Jose Valladares and Jorge Arturo Barba Martin.
Three of the four above mentioned doctors operated on the hand that is wielding this pen. My experience with the three surgeons has been positive, to put it mildly. The first three surgeons listed are gods to me. They spent one hour and 15 minutes repairing my wrist in an operating room at San Francisco de Asis Hospital in Guadalajara. They actually reconstructed my wrist.
This took place just over two years ago. I was playing on the tennis courts in Cihuatlán and somehow I lost my balance and dropped the racket. A heartbeat later my wrist is on the edge of the racket and on the next heartbeat my obese body lands on my wrist, which is immediately broken and smashed into smithereens.
I found my way to a medical clinic in Manzanillo. A surgeon there wanted to operate on the wrist that same day. By the grace of a god that does not exist, I have a friend, Jan, who is an orthopedic surgeon in Pueblo, Colorado. I told him what happened, which bone had broken and described the surgical procedure the doctor in Manzanillo wanted to perform on me. Jan advised against this surgery, saying it was an outdated procedure, informing me that it could wait three or four days.
About six years ago I was introduced to Dr. Isidoro Lavala Trujill, a professor at a university in Guadalajara who practices internal medicine. He has an office in the Hospital Angel de Leaño in Zapopan.
The day after breaking my wrist I asked Dr. Trujillo to recommend a surgeon. He called Dr. Jorge Nicolas Valladares to check that he spoke English. Luckily, Dr. Nick, as I call him, had spent years training and practicing in Houston, Texas.
I asked him about the procedure he would use to repair my wrist and he described an operation exactly like Jan described. He named the same brand of parts Jan had mentioned and said they were expensive and made in Switzerland. Finally, Dr. Jan gave Dr. Nick his seal of approval.
The surgery was a success. The team that performed the surgery comprised three of the four doctors Mr. Slater is not happy with.
Mr. Slater states, “I had searched in vain but needed to track down Dr. Francisco Arroyo Paz and his team of orthopedic surgeons.” During the course of my therapy and rehabilitation I met with Dr Arroyo and Dr. Nick many times. They are highly trained professionals. They do not hide from anybody and are respected members of Guadalajara’s medical community. Not only are they professional, they are compassionate. Those men went out of their way to answer any questions and spent many hours explaining my surgery and therapy. When I informed my sister that I had a consultation lasting over an hour, she said that in the United States you are lucky if you can talk to a surgeon for ten minutes. These surgeons have devoted their lives to learning the skills it takes to help their fellow human beings.
Mr. Slater you have nothing but my sympathy. Things do go wrong in surgery. I remember one time talking to a good doctor friend who told me that when everything goes right and he makes a person’s life better it is the greatest feeling. Conversely, when the operation is not a success it is a horrible feeling.
Gerry Goodman, Melaque,