Columbia St. Mary’s Bariatric Center

Joseph Regan, M.D., Bariatric Surgeon, Columbia St. Mary’s Bariatic Center

Posted: July 1, 2005

When it comes to weight loss, there’s no shortage of available options. Gyms and health clubs offer cut-rate fees for joining, grocery stores have entire aisles devoted to diet food and bookstores are rife with best-selling diet books.

But many of the estimated 40,000 Metropolitan Milwaukee residents who are morbidly obese – those whose body mass index (BMI) exceeds 40 – have gained and lost thousands of pounds attempting to control their weight through a variety of diet and exercise programs. It’s that group, most of whom are at least 100 pounds overweight, that Columbia St. Mary’s Bariatric Center works to serve.

Joseph Regan, M.D., Bariatric Surgeon, Columbia St. Mary’s Bariatic Center "We practice a multidisciplinary approach that provides for the best care and best chance for long-term success with weight loss."

“Obesity is a medical condition that is the result of many factors,” said Dr. Joseph Regan, Bariatric Surgeon and Medical Director of the Columbia St. Mary’s Bariatric Center. “We recognize how difficult it is for this group of people to lose weight, and we practice a multidisciplinary approach that provides for the best care and best chance for long-term success with weight loss.”

Dr. Regan and his colleagues, Dr. Bradley Mays and Dr. Craig Siverhus, specialize in minimally invasive procedures. The Bariatric Center also is staffed by a bariatric nurse coordinator, dietitians, social workers, physical therapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, anesthesiologists, and surgical technicians who work exclusively with surgeons at the center.

Special training
Before the Bariatric Center opened in August of 2003, all employees underwent sensitivity training, learning about the specific issues facing bariatric patients and some of the unique aspects of their care.

“We wanted to set up an environment where patients felt welcome,” Dr. Regan said. “It is important for our staff to be aware of the needs of our bariatric patients.”

It helps also that the furniture, medical equipment and patient rooms were all specifically designed with bariatric patients in mind.

“We not only invested in staff to make sure we take the best possible care of our patients,” Dr. Regan said, “we also invested in equipment and hospital design to ensure that we can take care of our patients’ needs appropriately.”

All these elements, he said, are crucial to ensuring a successful outcome. The team approach and specially trained staff are also particularly important in determining the best candidates for Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery.

The Bariatric Center staff has worked with 220 patients who have had the procedure. However, 550 people have come through the center since it opened. In some cases, the team determined that the patient was not a good candidate for the procedure, others are in the process of going through the required pre-operative workup, a process that takes between three and six months.

For those who are good candidates, it’s well worth the wait. Most lose between 70 and 80 percent of their excess body weight during the first year. Obesity-related symptoms, such as diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, high cholesterol and arthritis, lessen or disappear.

Team approach
People who may be considering having the procedure will first see a surgeon, dietitian and a bariatric nurse. If that initial group determines that the person is a good candidate for the procedure, they’ll then see a psychiatrist. They may also see other specialists, if needed. Those may include a physical therapist, gastroenterologist or other specialist who will make sure that both the team and patient are aware of all health-related issues prior to the surgery.

“Having multiple specialists and a team approach ensures that we’re doing this procedure safely,” Dr. Regan said. “Our patients are well informed about all aspects of the procedure, recovery and follow-up care.”

Because the surgery itself is only one component of a major lifestyle change, Dr. Regan said, the Center will not perform surgery on people they determine are not ready to deal with that reality.

For starters, there’s the matter of having a stomach that is suddenly the size of an egg, and can no longer accommodate pre-surgical food portions.

“Patients literally have to learn how to eat again,” he said. “They have to learn to spread their eating and drinking out over time.”

They also have to take vitamin supplements for the rest of their lives, and be monitored for follow-up care on an annual basis.

Support groups
The more well-informed patients are, Dr. Regan said, the better prepared they are to understand exactly what’s involved in having bariatric surgery, and what life is like afterward.

That’s one important reason, he said, that Columbia-St. Mary’s Bariatric Center has several patient support groups.

“The support groups are really critical to patients’ success in the program,” he said. “These people have gone through a trying time. They support each other and develop very close relationships.”

And the Bariatric Center staff is also still involved with the support groups. “We’re with our patients every step of the way.” Dr. Regan said.

For more information about the Bariatric Center at Columbia St. Mary’s, please go to www.milwaukeebariatricsurgery.com or call 414-962-BARI(2274).

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