Your Path
The Barrington Bariatric Center provides patients with a streamlined seminar to surgery process to ensure that you can achieve your goals in the shortest amount of time possible. We will assist you with each step, ensuring that you get the attention you deserve as you progress on your journey.
Your Path to a Healthier Lifestyle includes the following steps:
Our sessions will give you a chance to meet our Team and ask questions about our Program. After you attend our information seminar, you will meet with Dr. Chang and our Insurance Specialist to begin your pre-operative journey. We ask that you complete the following documents in order to start your weight loss journey with us:
Attend a consultation appointment with Dr. Chang.
You will also meet with our Bariatric Insurance Specialist to discuss our program steps to surgery. These steps will include discussion on insurance requirements, consultations with other specialists such as a Cardiology and Pulmonary, and completion of any preop diagnostic testing. During this time, we may ask for your assistance in obtaining the following documentation:
- Letter of bariatric surgery recommendation from your Primary Care Physician
- Medical record documentation of past medically supervised weight loss attempts and co-morbid conditions from other physicians that you have seen the past 5 years.
- 3 to 6 months of supervised diet and exercise documentation
Insurance
Most insurance plans cover bariatric surgery. Our expert Insurance Specialist will help guide you through the insurance process in order to obtain insurance approval for surgery. Many insurance policies differ from one another, therefore we will assist you in understanding your benefits and requirements for bariatric surgery. Commitment is required during this process to help achieve your goals. You may want to inform yourself on your insurance benefits. Here are some questions that you can ask your employer’s HR Department and/or Insurance Company:
Is my insurance policy sponsored as a self insured plan or a fully insured plan by my employer?
If your employer plan is fully-insured, the insurance company is ultimately responsible for the healthcare costs. The employer typically purchases a standardized package of coverage from an insurance company. In a self insured plan, your employer is ultimately responsible for the healthcare costs, and therefore can customize the plan to include and exclude specific coverage such as bariatric surgery coverage. A key difference is that fully-insured policies are governed by your state insurance commission, while an employer’s plan (self-insured) is governed by the Federal Government through the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) laws and regulations. If your self-insured employer does not cover bariatric surgery, you may want to write them a letter explaining how this disease has affected your life in order to obtain support for bariatric surgery. These differences affect how we will obtain insurance approval for surgery. Our Insurance Specialist will assist you in navigating the insurance process and policy requirements and options for pursing surgery.
Does my insurance policy cover Weight Loss Surgery for Morbid Obesity?
Request a copy of your insurance policy. These documents can either be provided from your employer or insurance company, (Many large employers have Benefits Websites where all of the plan documents can be found.) These documents explain your enrollment with the provider, such as whether you are enrolled in an HMO, PPO or indemnity plan. In regards to morbid obesity exclusions, request that your insurance provider highlight the sections in your plan that discuss the exclusions and mail/fax you a copy. Please provide a copy to our Insurance Specialist at your consultation appointment.
Does my Weight Loss Surgery benefit require a Medically Supervised
Weight Loss Trial?
Many times the answer to this question is YES. The following are common requirements by insurance companies in order to have weight loss surgery:
- BMI greater than 35 with one or two comorbidities (hypertension, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, Type II Diabetes, etc.)
- Or BMI greater than 40.
- 3 – 6 months of CONSECUTIVE medically supervised weight loss trial (either by Primary Care Physician or Surgeon)
- Evaluation by a Dietitian and Exercise Specialist
- Evaluation by a Psychologist for well-being
- Evaluation by a Cardiologist or Pulmonologist
- Sleep Study evaluation and other diagnostic tests
After completing your preoperative requirements, you will receive a date for surgery, conduct a final pre-operative consultation with Dr. Chang, and complete preop teaching prior to surgery.
Surgery
We will perform your surgery at Good Shepherd Hospital. Typically, there is a 1 – 3 day stay depending on which procedure you and your surgeon have chosen as a tool to help you loose weight. Dr. Chang performs surgery via advanced laparoscopic skills which will help reduce your postop pain, provide for a shortened hospital stay, and return you to work in two to three weeks. During your stay, you will also receive dietary education and begin exercising by walking after surgery prior to going home. Most of our patients rarely experience pain with bariatric surgery. If pain does occur, it is usually mild and controlled easily with medication. In addition, nurses, dietitians, and staff surgeons will all be monitoring your care closely. We are committed to you and your weight loss journey. Our team will be there to ensure that every thing possible is done to ensure that you have a comfortable stay.
After Surgery
The postoperative services we provide after surgery are essential in helping you to achieve your weight loss goals. Most patients begin to lose weight immediately within the first few weeks of surgery. Patients will follow up with the Dr. Chang regularly during the first year and then annually. Our staff will monitor your weight frequently and provide important emotional, dietary, and exercise counseling. In addition to losing weight, you will also improve your overall health. You may notice an elimination of many weight-related illnesses (comorbidities) such as sleep apnea, diabetes, high blood pressure, joint issues, and high cholesterol. Over 80% of patients report a significant improvement in their quality of life after surgery. Last but not least, patients are encouraged to attend our support groups. Come to our next Support Group Meeting! |
