Dr. Natalie S Weger, MD

1) Dr. Natalie Weger and her staff scheduled my surgery to be conducted in an operating room with sedation, which is the most expensive, intrusive, and traumatic option possible. They never informed me that I actually had options for this procedure. Specifically, I could have had it done in an office with a local anesthetic. Thus, they denied me say in my own medical care and expenses. I trusted them and didn’t think I could have had it done in any other way until I started doing my own research afterwards when my leg wasn’t healing. I then found out that my experience was completely unnecessary. 2)Neither Dr. Natalie Weger nor her staff adequately or properly prepared me for my surgery and thus denied me the ability to give informed consent and the right to refuse treatment. For example, they cut off my underwear, exposed my genitals, and shaved my groin and abdomen needlessly. Incisions were made around my knee only. My groin was not in the operative field, and nobody… explained any risk to me that would constitute a need to access my groin.. This was done without my knowledge or consent and is a violation of Iowa law and my Constitutional rights. I do realize that some people are not bothered by strangers stripping them naked and touching their genitals. But this should be mentioned for others who wish to maintain bodily autonomy at all times in order to preserve their modesty and dignity. It is especially important for sexual assault survivors and dealing with PTSD. None of the medical personnel will prepare a patient for this experience, and the patient will deal with trauma for a very long time as a result. 3) The anesthesia team will not inform a patient that he or she will given Versed as part of sedation. Research it. It causes short-term memory loss with no benefits to the patient. When asked about it, Dr. Weger told me that it was to relax me. But a patient is going to be sedated using Propofol anyway, so Versed is not necessary. Other oral medication for relaxation is available without causing the memory loss that Versed does. 4) The ablation of my great saphenous vein was ineffective. A year later, and my venous ulcer is still gaping, bleeding, and painful. My varicose veins are still bulging, and my leg is more swollen now than it was before the surgery. Dr. Weger acknowledged that my leg was not healing and expressed confusion as to why. 5) Dr. Weger told me I could stop taking Xarelto. And then when I developed a pulmonary embolism, she denied that she ever told me I could stop taking it. This is all documented in my medical records. 6) I was accused of declining a pre-op meeting, which is an outright lie. I was never given the option. Instead, a nurse elected to perform the pre-op over the phone. This is documented in my medical records. 7) Dr. Weger has a poor bedside manner. 8) Dr. Weger will not acknowledge that she and her staff made mistakes in my experience. I used to have complete faith, trust, and respect for medical personnel. But my experience with Dr. Weger and the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics shattered all of that. Nobody in the vascular surgery department at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics cares about these complaints. Dr. Weger and her staff refuse to take responsibility for the horrible experience they cause their patients when they fail to fully prepare them for surgery. So it is important to get this information out there for future patients so they can find another doctor and medical care provider. I wish someone had done the same for me. But my experience has profoundly affected me and others in my life in such a negative way that we will all have to deal with problems resulting from negligence on behalf of Dr. Weger and her staff for the foreseeable future.