The surgeons affiliated with our weight loss surgery program are independent practitioners who have medical staff privileges at Palms of Pasadena Hospital. The procedures performed by these surgeons, and their protocols for weight loss surgery patients, can vary. To learn more about a surgeon’s approach to weight loss surgery, you should attend a seminar or support group affiliated with that physician.

If you have any questions about our hospital, the surgeons, or the treatment options available to you, please contact us through our web form, by email, or by phone at 1-866-297-4576. We will be happy to give you any information you need.

Please meet the team of surgeons:

Dr. Ernest Rehnke

Dr. Ernest Rehnke, originally from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, attended medical school at St. George University School of Medicine in Grenada, West Indies. He then completed his five-year training in General Surgery at Methodist Hospital in New York, which included a Pediatric Surgery rotation at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y. and a Transplantation rotation at Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Following this training, Dr. Rehnke completed a one-year fellowship in Cardiovascular Surgery at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston, Texas. Dr. Rehnke established his surgical practice in General/Peripheral Vascular Surgery in St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1987. He has been a member of the Active Medical Staff at Palms of Pasadena Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL, since January 1988. Dr. Rehnke began performing the Gastric Bypass procedure for weight reduction in 1998 and added the LAP-BAND® procedure to his comprehensive program in 2004. Dr. Rehnke is Board Certified by the American Board of Surgery and a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He is also a member of the American Society for Bariatric Surgeons who has recognized him and Palms of Pasadena Hospital as a Center of Excellence for Bariatric Care.

Dr. Tiffany Jessee

Dr. Tiffany Jessee is a fellowship trained Bariatric Surgeon and Board Certified General Surgeon. She is a member of the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons and the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons. She received her medical degree from the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine in her native state of West Virgina. She completed her general surgery residency training at SunCoast Hospital in Largo, Florida. She then traveled to Coral Gables, Florida where she completed a one year fellowship in Advanced Laparoscopy and Bariatric Surgery. She is one of the few fellowship trained Bariatric surgeons in Florida. Dr. Jessee has been performing Bariatric surgery, including the LAP-BAND® and Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass since 2002. She serves on the faculty of Nova Southeastern University and provides clinical training for general surgery Residents.

Dr. Lee J. Grossbard

Dr. Lee J. Grossbard started in private practice in 1984 in the Tampa Bay area. After attending Lafayette College in Easton PA, he graduated from Autonomous University of Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico. He completed his internship at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY and his residency at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, MA. He completed his fellowship in general surgery and surgical critical care at James A. Haley, VA Hospital in Tampa, FL. Dr. Grossbard is a Board Certified Surgeon and a full member of the ASBS, (American Society of Bariatric Surgeons), as well as a proctor and member of the Medical Advisory Board for Inamed. Dr. Grossbard received his own LAP-BAND® in October of 2002 and now dedicates his surgical practice exclusively to LAP-BAND® surgery.