Welcomes Two Additional Surgeons to Staff, Adds Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass and Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy to Services
Des Peres Hospital announced today that it has expanded its surgical weight loss program for morbidly obese adult patients who have repeatedly failed more conservative weight reduction alternatives such as supervised diet, drugs, exercise and behavior-modification programs.
Des Peres Hospital’s program now offers Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery and Laroscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy in addition to Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding. All procedures help patients manage their diet by reducing the size of the stomach to a small pouch that can only hold a small amount of food, making the patient feel full for a much longer time after eating.
Des Peres Hospital welcomes two additional board certified surgeons to the program staff – Norbert L. Richardson, MD, and Richard O. Follwell, DO, – in order to be able to offer these additional procedures. Between them, Drs Richardson, Follwell and the program medical director, Darin Minkin, DO, have performed hundreds of bariatric surgeries.
We have also expanded our bariatric program staff to six:
- Judy Skaggs, LCSW, Program Director
- Chris Klittich, RN, CBN, Program Manager
- Michelle Leassner, RN, CBN, Program Coordinator
- Jessie Newman, RD, LD
- Ida Gillera, Office Coordinator
- Evetiasomone Allen, Insurance Specialist
Finally, to make the service more convenient for patients, the bariatric program has moved into new office space – in the MAP II building on Des Peres Hospital’s campus, 2315 Dougherty Ferry, Suite 109. Phone number is 314-966-9640.
Surgery for obesity is not for everyone. To be considered a candidate for bariatric surgery, individuals must:
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Be either severely obese (100 pounds or more overweight, with a Body Mass Index of 40 or more) OR obese with associated complications (a BMI of 35 or more, with a condition such as diabetes, severe sleep apnea, high blood pressure, lung and/or heart disease)
- Have tried unsuccessfully to lose weight through a structured, medical weight loss program
- Have obesity-related physical problems that interfere with employment, walking or family function.
- Undergo a psychological evaluation to determine if they are emotionally healthy enough to understand the ramifications of their decision.
- Be willing and able to commit to long-term medical follow-up, as well as rigorous lifelong changes in eating, exercise and lifestyle habits
These surgeries are offered as a part of a multidisciplinary approach to the evaluation and management of bariatric patients. Patients undergo a pre-surgical workup that includes multiple medical evaluations, dietary evaluation and counseling by a registered dietician and a psychological evaluation by a mental healthcare provider, as well as pre-operative laboratory and diagnostic tests.
Patients who are interested in weight loss surgery are encouraged to attend a free seminar and should call toll free 1-888-457-5203 option 3 to register.