Multidisciplinary Care For Obesity

Improving Surgical Outcomes for Morbidly Obese Patients

Iowa Health Weight Loss Specialists offers a full-service medical weight-loss program designed to help patients achieve their weight-loss goals through diet and exercise. Even though the program is designed specifically for patients with a body mass index (BMI) between 30 and 40 who are prediabetic or who have early-stage diabetes or heart disease, all obese patients who do not wish to have bariatric surgery can benefit, with patients with BMIs as high as 50 to 60 having experienced success.

A Certified Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence through the American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery and a Blue Distinction Center for Bariatric Surgery through Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa, Iowa Health Weight Loss Specialists is staffed by Nate Brady, M.D., M.P.H., Medical Director of the Medical Weight Management Program and Medical Director for Wellness at Iowa Health, and two bariatric surgical specialists — Todd Eibes, M.D., FACS, Medical Director, and Teresa LaMasters, M.D., FACS, minimally invasive bariatric surgeon. Both surgeons utilize minimally invasive techniques. Together, these three physicians provide comprehensive medical and surgical care for morbidly obese patients.

The first step for patients beginning the medical weight-loss program is a comprehensive evaluation that looks at conditions or medications that could exacerbate obesity, such as thyroid disease or polycystic ovary syndrome. Comorbid conditions, including heart disease, pulmonary disease, arthritis and sleep apnea, are also taken into consideration when formulating a diet and exercise plan. Once a clear medical picture has been obtained, personalized diet and exercise recommendations are created for each patient. Cardiac rehabilitation nurses work with patients who are healthy enough to exercise, and dieticians work with patients to develop customized dietary plans using each patient’s likes and dislikes to help them make small, 
realistic changes.

“Through the medical weight-loss program, we are able to provide patients with scientific information about their health so they can address a disease that has significant medical ramifications,” says Dr. Brady. “By setting targets for glucose levels, blood pressure and cholesterol, we help patients achieve better outcomes. Once patients begin seeing results and their weight has improved, glucose levels have decreased and good cholesterol levels have increased, patients become motivated and receive the encouragement they need to stick with their weight-loss programs.

Pete Maughan: Obesity is the Biggest Challenge in Healthcare

A Poll of Both Americans and Healthcare Professionals both reveal that both professionals and average Americans agree that Obesity is the largest challenge facing healthcare today. If you ask 100 people what the biggest challenge facing healthcare is in our day, you will have an overwhelming response that obesity is the biggest problem vexing healthcare. No doubt a dozen different answers will come up, but an overwhelming emphasis will show that Americans being overweight is leading to challenges of epidemic proportions and that something must be done about it or healthcare will be forever changed in a way that is for the worse. Naturally because of my relationship with Weightlosswars, I have come to appreciate and understand the enormous impact that community weight loss , and weight loss competitions can have on the overall health and wellness of individuals, groups, teams, and employee groups. Companies have found over and over again that when they institute weight loss challenges in their workplace, that excitement grows, and weight loss occurs at a more rapid and sustained rate than in the absence of a competition or challenge that takes on the attributes of a competition. When companies add financial incentives, the results improve even more than with competition aspects alone. I came across and article about UCLA's medical center recently and it caught my eye regarding their thoughts on how to tackle the biggest issues facing healthcare in today's world. In a press release, they stated that "Some of the biggest challenges in health care - from obesity to smoking-related cancers - are best dealt with from the perspective of community, said Washington. UCLA Health Sciences has bold plans for partnering with multidisciplinary institutions to tackle high-impact problems on a broad scale." This stood out to me in a number of ways because you find that a vast number of these kind of problems can be dealt with if there is a strong support system in place. This information affirms the legitimacy of weight loss competitions in the lives of Americans.

Prader-Willi syndrome as a model for obesity, international symposium, Zurich, October 18-19, 2002

Clinical Obesity in Adults and Children

Morbid obesity, peri-operative management

Obesity: Oral and written evidence

Encyclopedia of obesity