Department of Bariatric Medicine

Our Department of Bariatric Medicine supports adults who are very overweight and have a high degree of body fat to improve their health and wellbeing.

A person’s body weight is assessed by a method called the body mass index (BMI). This is calculated by dividing your weight in kilograms by your height in metres squared. We support adults with a BMI of 40 or more.

About this service

Our service focuses on people with a high risk of developing complications from obesity or who already have additional health problems. Our team includes doctors, nurses, dietitians, psychologists, and exercise physiologists/physiotherapists.

We will work with you to achieve a healthier lifestyle and reduce your risk of developing further medical conditions related to obesity. Following a detailed medical assessment, you will work with the service to develop an Obesity Management Plan which may include:

• advice on physical activity and nutrition
• group education
• physical activity programs
• strategies to improve social and emotional wellbeing
• support for long term self-management

Generally, we will provide you with 12 months support. We will not take over primary care from your general practitioner.

Who we care for

We accept patients who have been referred by their doctor and who:

• are over 18 years of age
• have a BMI of 40 or over
• have one or more other medical conditions
• are willing and able to change your lifestyle
• can get to appointments.

Our program may not be suited for you if you:

• are physically unable or unwilling to change your lifestyle
• have severe or unstable psychiatric illness or substance dependence
• have a cognitive impairment
• have an intellectual disability
• are house bound
• are pregnant.

How to access this service

You will need a referral from your General Practitioner (GP) or other Medical Professional to access this service.

Once we receive your referral we will triage it and ask you to attend an information session so you can decide if the service is for you.

What to expect

We receive large numbers of referrals which means there can be significant wait times. Referrals are triaged on a medical needs basis.

Triage category 1 (the most urgent patients) include people with:

• a BMI greater than 60
• a recent hospital admission with a life threatening obesity complication
• an urgent and potentially life saving procedure that requires immediate weight loss.

Triage category 2 includes those who have a newly diagnosed obesity condition, such as Diabetes, and who:

• have had a recent hospital admission with severe conditions where weight loss would be beneficial
• have had repeated hospitalisations for conditions that are made worse by obesity
• need a procedure that requires urgent weight loss
• have Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Triage category 3 includes all other patients who fall outside the above criteria.

If you think your medical condition has changed please see your GP for an updated referral.

If after attending the information session you wish to continue with our service, we will process your referral and give you an appointment. It can take up to 12 months for an appointment to become available.

1. Your first appointment will be with a doctor and nurse. After this you will be required to attend group education classes.
2. You will be allocated a case management pathway to help you develop an individual Obesity Management Plan.
3. You need to maintain regular contact with the service while you work on your goals and actions from the Obesity Management Plan. We encourage at least monthly contact.
4. The first six months focus on intensive life style intervention, trying to optimise your health, diet and physical activity routines as a foundation for long term health and to get the best from intensive options.
5. You will have a medical review after about six months.
6. You will then be medically reviewed as required by your Bariatric Medicine doctor (usually 3 to 6 monthly) and discharged when agreed. This is usually after being in the service for approximately 12 months.

While you wait for an appointment, your specialist GP has a wealth of knowledge and experience, and can help you in the care of the chronic condition of obesity. You can make an appointment with your GP to discuss and assess your health and plan a way forward while you wait to join our service.

We also have resources available below that provide additional advice.

Bariatric surgery

Please note your participation in the service will not always result in bariatric surgery.

If this is a treatment you are interested in, after working together with your doctor and the Bariatric Medicine team for a minimum of six months, you may be assessed for your suitability (medically, physically and emotionally) for public funded bariatric surgery by the Bariatric Surgery Advisory Committee. There are a limited number of funded positions for public funded bariatric surgery. If approved for surgery there may be a wait before the surgery can be performed and it can take one to two years from your first appointment with the service.

You may discuss private bariatric surgery options with your GP.

If you choose to have bariatric surgery performed privately while on our wait list or while in our program your care will be handed over to your surgical team and you will be discharged from the Department of Bariatric Medicine. Your care is best given by the service that performed your surgery for consistency and continuity.

What to bring to your appointment

• Medicare card
• Health Care card and/or concession card/ Veterans (if you have one)
• List of medicines you are currently taking (or the boxes), including medicines you have bought without a prescription, such as herbal supplements and vitamins
• Previous x-ray films, scans, ultrasounds or any other test results or reports

Where we’re located

We are located at the Belconnen Community Health Centre.

There is free 3 hour and accessible parking in the health centre basement parking. If you require assistance with transport, please discuss with your Bariatric Medicine Case Manager case manager.

We have directions and transport information for this service.

Resources

Obesity Management Service [PDF 239kB] information sheet

Nutrition advice

• Australian guide to healthy eating
• Nutrition and Dietetics Service ACT
• Nutrition and Dietetics Service NSW
• There are a number of private dietetics services available in the region. We suggest discussing this with your GP.

Physical activity advice

• Physical activity and exercise guidelines for all Australians
• Community Care Physiotherapy Service
• Consider discussing a referral for an exercise physiologist with your GP. An exercise physiologist can work with you to prescribe activity in the context of your health goals and medical background.

Health coaching

• Get Healthy NSW - if you are a NSW resident the NSW government has funded Get Health NSW, a free personalised telephone based coaching program.
• Canberra Allied Health website

Managing chronic conditions

• Take Control, Live Well Program

Eating disorders

• Eating Disorders Clinical Hub
• Support for Eating Disorders and Body Image Issues