Weight Loss Procedures

When searching for a weight loss program, the first place to start is by asking your family physician for a recommendation. Your doctor should be able to provide you with several options for programs that other patients have found to be successful.

Ideally, you should do a lot of research, ask a lot of questions, and find a weight loss program that you are comfortable with (even excited about participating in!)

Here are the basic things you should consider when researching weight loss programs:

• How much weight do you wish to lose? Your program should encourage you to set realistic and attainable goals.
• How much support will you receive from the program? Find a program that offers support in ways that suit your lifestyle (online classes, personal counseling, support groups, etc.)
• Can the program be customized to meet your lifestyle? The program you choose should fit the way you live. If they simply make you eat things you don't like, it will be hard to stick with it.
• What kind of maintenance program is provided? The best programs include a maintenance regime that focuses on helping you change your eating and exercise patterns.

If you would like to learn more tips about searching for a program, please click here.

This is part two of several on the questions that should be considered when looking into a weight loss program. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney lists the following questions they feel you should ask as you search for a weight loss program.

What are the staff qualifications?
Because Clarian Bariatrics is a surgical weight loss program, this is not as big an issue as it would be in a weight loss clinic.  You can be sure here that you are followed by qualified, board certified medical doctors and nurses who are well trained and have a great deal of experience in surgical weigh loss.   

Who supervises the program?
Terri Hohlt, MSN, RN, is the Program Administrator. Terri has 30 years of nursing experience with Clarian Health.  Her role is to keep an overview of the whole program.  She hires the staff, keeps the program on budget, makes sure the physicians and staff have what they need provide top of the line care to our Indiana bariatric patients.  Terri continually monitors all aspects of the program to assure we provide the quality care each person deserves.

The medical director of the program is Samer Mattar, MD, who is board certified surgeon.  Dr. Mattar has received special training in advanced laparoscopy surgery at Emory University Hospital.  He is also a member of the American College of Surgeons, the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons, and several other professional organizations.  The medical director's role is to ensure that all patients receive the highest quality medical care available.

In addition to the above, the Clarian Bariatrics surgery program provides a “complete package” program with weight loss support provided by a full staff of highly trained, licensed, board certified Dietitians who specialize in weight loss and the health problems caused by obesity.  We also have a Bariatrics Behavioral Medicine department headed up by Clinical Psychologist William Hilgendorf, PhD, HSPP.  His staff helps to support your surgical weight loss effort with a variety of group sessions geared specifically to bariatric patients.

What type of weight-management training, experience, education, and certifications does the staff have?
You can see from the list above that this program is serious about providing you top of the line quality care.  In addition to the above highly trained staff, other members of the team are patients of this bariatric surgery center with the deepest understanding of the program, and patients concerns, and struggles.  They have insights that only someone who has been there can provide, that adds to their qualifications for the position they have at this Indianapolis Weight loss clinic.

Want to learn more? Then join us at a FREE informational seminar. Dates can be found by clicking on the image at the right of this post.

We were recently in the news regarding our outpatient expansion and the addition of two surgeons. Click the link below to view the brieif in the Indianapolis Business Journal.

Clarian Bariatrics Moving Locations Inside INdiana Business (press release) - Indianapolis,IN,USA Clarian Bariatrics says it is moving its outpatient clinic to better accommodate the rapidly growing weight loss program, which has experienced a double ...

We sent out this information earlier in the week, and I wanted to share it with you. We are thrilled at all the changes coming to Clarian Bariatrics, and we realize it would not be possible without your continued support! You guys are the best!

Exciting changes are in store for Clarian Bariatrics this summer as the program announced the addition of two full-time surgeons and a move to a new 30,000 square foot outpatient clinic to better accommodate the rapidly growing program, which has experienced double digit growth the past three years.

Dr. Daniel T. McKenna will join the surgical team of Clarian Bariatrics, a designated Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), on August 10. Dr. McKenna joins the programs five other bariatric surgeons who completed nearly 400 surgeries at Clarian North Medical Center in 2008.

A Wisconsin native, McKenna comes to Clarian Bariatrics from Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., where he completed his minimally invasive surgery fellowship. He is a graduate of Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies and his Doctor of Medicine. McKenna was a categorical resident in general surgery at the University of Utah and the University of Wisconsin.

In April, Dr. Jack Ditslear joined the Clarian Bariatrics staff full-time after working on a part-time basis with the program since its launch in 2004. A Noblesville native, Dr. Ditslear graduated with honors in chemistry at Miami University of Ohio and then graduated from the Indiana University School of Medicine. He completed his general surgery residency at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Dr. Ditslear carries a vast amount of experience in bariatric surgery. He is a member of the American Society of Bariatric and Metabolic Surgeons, and is also accredited as a Bariatric Center of Excellence Surgeon by the Surgical Review Corporation. Additionally, Dr. Ditslear is certified by the American Board of Surgery and is on the teaching staff for the Indiana University General Surgery Residence program. 

“We are thrilled to have Drs. McKenna and Ditslear join the surgery staff at Clarian Bariatrics on a full-time basis,” Jonathan Goble, FACHE, President & CEO of Clarian North Medical Center, said. “The addition of these two skilled surgeons will aid in the successful implementation of many exciting programs.”

Among those initiatives is the launch of a non-surgical division for the weight loss program and an adolescent bariatric program. In addition, an exercise program championed by Erin Light, a certified personal trainer, will begin in August and provide patients an educational approach to personally-tailored exercise programs. Also, William Hilgendorf, PhD, Manager of Bariatric Behavioral Health, has implemented a behavioral program that will increase the coping skills of post-operative patients and improve patient outcomes.

These new patient support opportunities fit with the already established and popular weekly support groups and quarterly cooking classes. Programs like these have led Clarian Bariatrics to be nationally recognized as a robust program that enjoys some of the best weight loss outcomes in effectiveness and durability.

Due to the ongoing program growth, the Clarian Bariatrics outpatient clinic will move from its current location in building 11 of Intech Park to a 30,000 square foot space in building 10 of Intech Park, located on the northwest side of Indianapolis. This move will provide staff with more exam rooms, dedicated exercise rooms and additional meeting space for support groups and the non-surgical weight loss program.

“The growth our program has experienced over the past five years has been remarkable and humbling,” Samer Mattar, MD, FACS, Medical Director of Clarian Bariatrics, said. “Our staff, surgeons and patients have helped us create a unique program that is only beginning to reach its full potential.”

Clarian Bariatrics offers extensive counseling, through our psychology department, our dietitians and our exercise physiologist. This provides individuals with a wide range of group and one-to-one sessions not just for counseling, but to assist you in becoming more physically active, help in making positive choices, and healthy behavior changes. 

Our exercise physiologist (Erin Light, also a blogger) is available to instruct you on how to increase your activities as you move up to a regular fitness program.  She will help you develop a plan and give you specifics on how to achieve your goals.  The Dietitians (Annessa, Alvin, Sarah, Jennifer - all bloggers) will help you make nutritional and healthy choices.  The psychology department (Bill, also a blogger) will help with coping skills that cover eating habits, body image, family dynamics, and various other topics of interest.

Our weight loss program will ask you to keep a food diary, and pre-surgery you will be required to follow a liver reduction diet of specific, widely available, foods, used to reduce the size of your liver, in turn reducing surgical risks.  The wide variety of foods available on this list should have something for everyone regardless of dislikes or allergies and should fit into any lifestyle or cultural needs.

Once you have had bariatric surgery you will be required to take vitamin supplements for the remainder of your life.  Your surgeon, based on blood tests, determines what you need to take.

After your weight loss surgery, Clarian Bariatrics has a full range of support groups to
keep you making positive and healthy behavior changes, to learn ways of dealing with such issues as what to eat at social or holiday gatherings, changes to work schedules, lack of motivation, and injury or illness?  Additionally dietitians are available by phone regularly and we have a great blog that helps keep our patients in touch as well.

As you can see from the above Clarian Bariatrics has a program full of ways to help you succeed in your weight loss goals.  Please give us a call for more information. If you are not in the Indianapolis area, look at similar programs in your area and see if they offer similar program elements as we do. The key is that you want to find a well-rounded program that supports not only your weight loss, but your emotional and exercise needs as well.

Learn more about us at ACallToChange.org.

This is part one on several questions you should consider when looking into a weight loss  program whether it be in Indiana or elsewhere in the world.

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease lists the following questions they feel you should ask as you search for a weight loss program.

1.    What does the weight-loss program consist of?
These guidelines are for any weight loss program you may be considering and not just bariatric surgery.  As Clarian Bariatrics currently only offers a surgical program, I will only be addressing our current services in the following posts.

Clarian Bariatrics is a well-rounded program that touches on all the topics discussed above - and more.  You can find information about our Indianapolis based weight loss surgery program on ACallToChange.org.  Look for more questions to ask next week!

While I was doing some research, I came across a metaphor that really related to Indianapolis weight loss program at Clarian Bariatrics.  The metaphor compares our work to that of a mountain guide.  A mountain guide is someone who leads groups or individual hikers up a serious mountain climb.  They work with them from the beginning by preparing them mentally, educating them about the conditions and course, and even getting them the right equipment before they head out on the journey. 

As they climb the mountain, the guide leads them and coaches them.  He keeps them motivated and catches them when they are tired or afraid.  But although he can help them through the journey, the guide can’t climb the mountain for them.  He can only lead them down the right path.  It is up to the climbers to take each step for themselves.

I often equate my position at Clarian Bariatrics with the mountain guide’s position.  I know many of my coworkers feel this way too.  You can probably tell by this blog that we enjoy guiding you on this journey. 

Our Indiana supervised weight loss classes prepare you mentally, provide you with health education, and supply you with the physical and mental equipment you need.  Our pre-operative weight loss surgery class teaches you the conditions and course you are about to embark on, and our Support Groups keep you moving forward on the journey.  But just like the mountain guide can’t hike the mountain for others, we can’t make the day-to-day decisions for you. 

It is up to you to climb this mountain for yourself.  As our program grows, we are discovering new ways that we can continue to help you on this path.  Continue visiting this blog to learn about the new additions in the future.  And as you are using your strength to take one step forward each day, we will be right by your side to help.

Have you been interested in learning more about bariatric weight loss? Then consider joining us at a FREE weight loss surgery information session on Thursday, July 23 at 6:30 p.m. These sessions are your opportunity to have your questions answered by Indianapolis bariatric surgeons and learn about gastric bypass, Lap-Band and other types of medically-supervised weight loss procedures.

You are not alone on this journey, and we encourage you to bring family and friends along. We cannot wait to meet you at our Indianapolis location on Thursday. Please click the image to the right of this post to register.

See you there!

While I think this article raises some interesting points, it only skims the surface of what really constitutes a successful weight loss surgery outcome. Can the type of insurance a patient has be a pre-cursor to how successful they will be in a bariatric weight loss program? Maybe.

I think more telling is how willing they are to make a commitment to a healthier lifestyle. That is, how many support groups will they attend? Can they give up the unhealthy eating habits and focus on intake? Are they committed to a regular exercise routine? In my opinion, it doesn't matter if you have commercial insurance, a government funded plan or a self-pay option, if you have the will...there will be a way! Click here to read the quick article.

If you are interested in learning more about causes of obesity and how you can have a successful surgery outcome, then join us at a FREE informational seminar. At the seminar you can hear from past patients and listen to Indianapolis Weight Loss Surgery Doctors talk about the process. Click on the image at the right of this page to view dates.

My next step was to meet with the team of professionals at Clarian Bariatrics, meet their requirements and receive their approval. I met with a surgeon, dietitian and psychologist.  I had a sleep study performed, pre-op testing and had to meet with the hospitalist to get his approval for surgery.

Once all of my tests came back I gathered the results and my five years of medical history and gave it all to the insurance department and everything was forwarded to my insurance company.  I gave it a week and contacted my insurance company.  Apparently the first round of paperwork seemed to have been misplaced.  My paperwork was re-faxed and re-mailed.  I again waited a week and contacted my insurance company and was initially told they had no record of my paperwork. 

I was HOT! After some investigation my paperwork turned up in someone’s "IN" box. I was told the paperwork would be forwarded to the correct department for review and a decision so again more waiting time for me. I waited about a week again, contacted my insurance company and was told I was DENIED.  

I was flabbergasted and didn’t know how to react.  I received the letter which stated the documentation does not support the patient has failed conservative medical management for her co-morbidities.  There is no evidence of the patient has participated in a physician-directed weight loss program for 18 consecutive months with bi-weekly weights, treatment and discussion.  WHAT? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?  I had five years of medical history, all of my tests and results and this wasn’t enough. 

Have you run into a similar problem while trying to have weight loss surgery? Then leave me a comment below and I'll see how I can help out!

Those are the words I’ve been spreading these past few weeks to my colleagues at Clarian Bariatrics.  Those of you who are reading this post are the reason I come to work each and every day.  I’ve had the pleasure of hearing from many of you about your personal struggles, successes and wow moments. 

We’ve discussed your weight loss procedures, weight loss support system, obesity related problems, questions about bariatric surgery, gastric bypass, gastric banding, support groups, free informational weight loss seminars and the list goes on. 

You sincerely touch my heart and motivate me more than you can imagine.  I want to take this time to say “Thank You” from the bottom of my heart for all of your comments, questions and concerns.  The first thing I do every morning is check my email inbox to see if I’ve touched one person’s life that day.

I am truly blessed to be  involved with the most outstanding Indiana Bariatric Center and a part of your lives. I am honored to become one of your support persons in your weight loss journey and value the confidence you have placed in me!

Please know that you can contact me confidentially by email at bariatric@clarian.org or you can call me at 317-275-7010 and leave a message on my confidential voicemail.  If you would like to leave a comment to share with anyone who reads the blog you can respond below in the comment section. 

I look forward to hearing from you soon!

Will insurance pay for plastic surgery after a bariatric weight loss surgery procedure? I often get asked this question after a patient has weight loss surgery. 

Most insurance companies consider plastic surgery cosmetic therefore it is not covered.  However, I do know that some patients are getting insurance to pay for a portion of it due to skin infections documented in a medical record.

If you have additional questions about costs associated with bariatric surgery or other questions related to life after a weight loss procedure, please leave me a comment below.

Problems caused by obesity can include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, sleep apnea, and depression.  Indiana weight loss doctors say that anyone 100 pounds or more overweight is morbidly obese.

For many in Indianapolis Gastric Bypass surgery might be a solution.  The best weight loss programs are not fad diets but are programs that are professionally or medically supervised.  In addition to Indianapolis Weight Loss Surgery, a program should help you establish healthy behaviors that change the lifestyle and helps you focus a lifetime of weight loss.

Talk to your family doctor if weight loss surgery is a good option for you or come hear one of our Indiana Weight Loss Doctors speak about morbid obesity surgery during one of Clarian Bariatrics monthly information seminars. Check the upper right hand corner of this blog for more information.

Today, I would like to address the important topic of adopting, and maintaining, correct eating habits after weight loss surgery.  

As I see more patients who are farther out from weight loss procedures, I often notice that some unwelcome habits are taken up while eating; primarily not paying attention, and reverting to the “old days” of  mindless eating. I hear many patients tell me that they eat their meals in front of the television, or engage in reading a newspaper or magazine or computer work.

Obviously what then often happens is that patients forget to take small bites, chew adequately and swallow slowly. This leads to either eating too much, or food getting stuck, which then results in either drinking water to “push” it down, or leaving the table to regurgitate the offending morsel.

It is important to remember the rules of proper eating and stick to them forever.

1.    Never skip meals.
2.    Eat by the clock; do not rely on appetite.
3.    Stop whatever you are doing when meal time arrives.
4.    Sit and eat at the table, not in the den or at your office desk.
5.    Stick to the healthy portions, and always eat protein first.
6.    Minimize snacking between meals.
7.    Do not drink at mealtime.
8.    Once full, leave the table, or if at a restaurant, ask food to be removed.
9.    Pay attention to how you are eating, enjoy the food.
10.    Meals should be formal events.

I am confident that following these rules will help continued weight loss, and prevent anxiety about increased food capacity, and discomfort with eating.

Most importantly, please remember to pay attention!

While trying to immerse myself in the world of weight loss procedures, I have signed up for A LOT of weight loss surgery news alerts. One of my favorite Web sites is the Obesity Action Coalition, which offers tips to caregivers and patients. I saw this article and thought it was interesting for both Indiana bariatrics patients and Indiana bariatric surgeons.

Check out the tease below and then follow the link to learn more about this, and other, obesity related problems.

If you think liver disease is a problem mainly related to alcohol abuse, think again. The metabolic changes linked to obesity are now causing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in about 30 percent of the U.S. population. And since our obesity rates are climbing, we can expect further increases in liver disease in the years ahead.
 
For more information, please click here.

After Indianapolis weight loss surgery you might be wondering "what now?"

Clarian Bariatric's Indianapolis gastric bypass center offers ongoing support for all of our patients who have had a weight loss procedure.  Indiana bariatric doctors believe that support is vital to your weight loss success.

Our weight loss surgery program encourages every patient undergoing gastric bypass weight loss, stomach stapling surgery and those contemplating surgery, to attend FREE support group meetings regularly for encouragement and to share frustrations and concerns.

Whether you simply want to talk, or you are looking for a more structured educational setting, Clarian Bariatrics offers a variety of group formats, using the latest techniques in counseling, support and care, to help you reach your goals.

Weight loss surgery isn't a magic bullet...causes of obesity are accumulation of a lifetime. Our skilled Indiana weight loss doctors and staff are here to help you succeed...forever.

Support groups are held the first and third Wednesday (gastric bypass weight loss specific) of each month from 6 - 7:30 p.m. There is also support group on the fourth Friday of each month from 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. All support groups are held at our clinic located at 6625 Network Way, Suite 100, Indianapolis. Please call 317-275-7010 if you have questions.

Are you trying to determine if surgical weight loss is right for you? Then please consider attending one of our upcoming surgical weight loss seminars held at Clarian Bariatrics.

These seminars are full of information and can help you answer questions related to bariatric surgery costs, bariatric surgery financing options and various weight loss procedures.

Additionally, information will be shared about common bariatric options including: lap band, gastric bypass surgery, stomach stapling and other surgical weight loss procedures.

All of these sessions are FREE, and you are more than welcomed to bring as many support people as necessary so that you feel comfortable.

Each will be held at Clarian Bariatrics, located at INTECH Park, Building 11, 6625 Network Way, Suite 100, Indianapolis.

• Thursday, August 7 at 6:30 p.m.
• Saturday, August 9 at 10 a.m.
• Thursday, August 21 at 6:30 p.m.

Please call us at 317-275-7010 if you have questions for visit our Web site to save your place!