Yes the sleeve, RNY and in some instances the DS are covered in Ontario. Although the RNY is considered the "gold standard" and is therefore the most often performed. The VSG is only approved if you've had previous abdominal surgeries or your bmi is over 60. Neither of which apply to me.
So I'm trying to find out what the qualifications are in other provinces so that I can hopefully use that to convince OHIP to do the VSG on me.

Good Afternoon Everyone,

I have just started to do some serious ground work on weight loss surgery and don't really have the time to read through every post on here so I'm looking for some info on how to get started.

I have an appt with my local family doctor to talk about this more in depth. Where are people first referred to. I have read a lot of people going out of the city to clinics in Edmonton and Red Deer and Medicine Hat, and even out of country. Are Calgary clinics not taking new patience? I also don't have any serious life threatening medical problems due to my weight but I have a BMI of at least 40 and at least 150 or more pounds overweight in the morbidly obese category although I really don't like to admit this. Does this put me at the end of the waiting list? I do realize that after struggling with  my weight for almost 20 years something drastic has to be done and I'm ready to really put my life as the number one priority. I have even done the Dr B diet although it did show some result couldn't continue due to the cost and the weight piled back on even trying to stick to the food plan. Once the accountability was done so was the motivation. 

I have also read a lot of posts about people opting for the sleeve and not going for the bypass surgery. Is there more of a reason behind this method other than personal preference as I have also read that people who opt for the sleeve often don't get any coverage by AHS. Or are more surgeons pushing patience towards this, or is it because the criteria for the bypass is strict to those with life threatening conditions due to their weight.

I had read on comment from a fellow Calgarian that she didn't think it was fair that she would have to wait to get a life threatening condition to get the help that she needs to avoid this happening. 

Any advise and support would be greatly appreciated as we all go though this together and support one another and share success stories. 

Monica 

 

 

I am probably not the best person to answer your question because I paid for my own surgery in Mexico.  However, I understand that the various provincial programs offer RNY, VSG and some type of band.  I think all three are patients' choice unless there is a medical reason to rule one or more out.  Looking forward to reading others' responses.

Nope, only the 3 listed above

Does anyone know if the Alberta Weight Wise program is offering mini gastric bypass?  I just came across this procedure in my research but I don't know much about it. Sounds better than the gastric.  Any thoughts?