A full team will assess you and your suitability for bariatric surgery. This assessment is in your best interests to ensure you get the optimum results from your surgery and to make sure we identify any potential problems.
Before surgery you’ll meet with our counsellor for two one-hour sessions. Together you’ll look at the things about your lifestyle that might be a challenge for you after your operation. Identifying any issues that may come up after your surgery and working out a plan to deal with them prepares you and is a vital part of your care. You’ll also have the option of therapy for emotional issues that may come up. Getting help with these issues is important to achieving your goals
"We acknowledge the psychological challenges that people may face before and after surgery; therapy therefore provides a space to explore who you are as an individual as well as cultural and environmental influences.”
- Elisabeth StubbsCounsellor/Therapist
Our dietitian will help you work out an eating plan to fit in with your lifestyle. They’ll also put you on a diet plan to lose some weight before surgery. It is vital that you follow this diet closely for the specified time period before your surgery as it reduces the size of your liver and makes the operation safer and more straightforward. The diet we give you before the operation is called the Optifast® VLCD Plan. VLCD stands for Very Low Calorie Diet and it completely replaces your normal diet. Instead of your usual meals you’ll have 3 sachets of Optifast each day (or 800 kcal). Optifast meals are designed to reduce the fat you have stored while preserving your muscles.
The surgeon will discuss in full the issues related to obesity and talk in depth about the various surgical options that are available so that you are fully informed and can make an educated decision. Before your operation your anaesthetist – the specialist doctor who puts you to sleep for your surgery – will meet with you or ring you to talk about any medical problems you have had and organise any tests needed including a chest x-ray, ECG, blood tests and possibly other tests such as an echocardiograph and blood gases.
Surgery is only one component of your journey to a healthier life – exercise and changes to your lifestyle are also a vital part. Consider engaging with a lifestyle coach. After the assessment the team will discuss your suitability for surgery and there is a slight possibility that surgery may be deferred or declined due to concerns raised by the team.