Re-connection question

While I've a bunch of questions regarding my upcoming reconnection (most of them minor).

The big is regarding my GI, or lack of one I should say. My original GI had his practice shift away from GI issues to liver stuff, and gave me referral to a doctor who specialised in IBD. This was all happening as I was getting ready to have my colon removed. I never established any sort of report with the new GI, never got attached to him, I can't even recall his name. I saw him twice before I had surgery and once after, and at the last appointment he said something along the lines of "Well I guess you're a surgical patient now". That was close to 3 years ago (this surgery will actually be 6 weeks short of the 3 year anniversary of the colectomy)

Seeing as I have UC as opposed to CD, as far as disease progression goes, no colon, no problems, I am in theory "cured".

How important is it that I have a GI? Do I try and get a new one? Do I reconnect with the old one? Do I just go along my merry way without one?

Well you should have a GI being that issues can arise after reconnection. You also may still need colonoscopies in the future to rule out problems and so it's good to be listed as a patient. I think it's fine if you go back to that guy 3 years later.

what issues can reoccur?

The main one is pouchitis, which is an inflammation of unknown origin. The statistics show that upwards of 50% of people with the pelvic pouch will get at least once in the first 15 years following the surgery.
Currently they don't know the cause, there are theories that it is bacterial in origin, others think that it is caused because of misdiagnosis, because UC and CD can be very hard to differentiate at times, they think that some people who have had the colon removed actually have CD, and it is just inflammation returning after a period of remission.

But I'll probably get in contact with the old doctor if he is still at the same place, I ny saw him a couple of times. I was never really attached to him.