Newbie...St Joseph's Hamilton Info Please!

Hi everyone...

taken the plunge and have decided to have surgery!  My doctor made a referral back in September and I have an orientation meeting in March. I was assigned to St Joseph's Hamilton. A couple of questions...

Any info about St Joes? Wait times etc?

What determines the types of tests someone needs?  It doesn't seem to be consistent. 

Also what does the term PATTS stand for?

thanks so much in advance!!

Melissa

I am going through ST.JOes as well . My orientation is in APril.  I have no idea about wait times. iWould love to hear from others as well about their experience in HAmilton.

Thank you for your reply!  Whereabouts are you?  I'm in Burlington. I've been wondering if there are local support groups around?

I am in Waterdown.  I am also new to this and just trying to figure everything out.  I haven't seen very much information on here for Hamilton. Hopefully we can get some answers .  I did see something on here about coffee group the meets monthly in Burlington but haven't seen it in awhile.  

Welcome to your WLS (weight loss surgery) journey!

I don't have specifics about Hamilton but can tell you that wait times and practices definitely vary between Centres! If you read people's signatures you can get an idea of their timetables and the order in which they were sent to appointments. When you set up your "signature" it's helpful if you list what Centre you're with so other people can get the same idea.

Some Centres use the circumference of your neck to determine if you will require a sleep study, while others may base it on your BMI, your symptoms, or all three. Other testing such as blood work and an ECG will determine what other tests you might need. If you have a history or symptoms of gastrointestinal problems they may require a gastroscope.

PATTS is the Pre-Admission Testing you have done just prior to having surgery. Mine is a week before my surgery, but others seem to have theirs done just days prior. The appointment consists of having blood work done, an ECG, a chest x-ray and a meeting with the anaesthetist.

Here's a web address you may find helpful:

St Joe's Manual:
http://www.stjoes.ca/media/PatientED/U-Z/PD%206000%20Bariatric%20Surgery%20-%20Gastric%20Bypass%20February%2029%202012.pdf.

Good luck!

Hey there. I am with st. Joes in Hamilton and here is where I am. I had my orientation July 29 2013 and just received my letters for my dietitian etc appointment for May 16 2014. I did get a requisition for an ultrasound, ECG and the blood work just before christmas as well. Compared to other centres this seems very slow to me.  Hoping things speed up a bit once those appointments take place in May ????

Hi! I went through hamilton and my journey started Aug 2012 when my referral was sent I then had my orientation in March 2013 and then had my first appointment at the clinic in Aug followed by many appointments and then surgery was Oct 23 everything has been great the staff was great at the clinic and everyone you see in the OR were great my surgeon was Dr Hong very quiet man but great at his job at this point I have lost 71lbs oh and I only had to do 9 days of opti!!!! Good luck to you

Hello Melissa,

I had my Surgery Oct 4 at St. Joe's and it was a pleasant experience.  My referring doctor had me complete a lot of the necessary tests (ECG, Cardiac Imaging, abdominal ultrasound, gastroscopy) between my orientation and first meeting with the dietitian, so I think that may have sped things up a bit.  You will also need a sleep study done at some point.  I was previously diagnosed with Sleep Apnea, so another test wasn't required.

Here is my timeline... not sure it applies to everyone.

 

Orientation meeting - December 2012 (Don't be late or they WILL NOT let you in).

Nurse/Psychologist/Dietitian - June 2013

Surgeon July 2013 - Requested Barium Swallow as my gastroscopy showed a hiatus hernia.

Barium Swallow - August 2013

Follow-up w/ Surgeon - Early September 2013

Group Dietitian Meeting -  Late September 2013

Surgery - October 4, 2013

My only other advice is that if you do have some of the tests done beforehand, ask your family doctor for copies of all the test results and bring them with you to your first appointment with the nurse.  Not sure who's fault it is, but paperwork does tend to get lost in the system.  You are your own best advocate... don't rely on the system to take care of you.  Take a proactive approach, do your research and get ready for a huge change to your lifestyle.  Support from family, friends, and the great people at St. Joes is a great help, but it is ultimately you that will make the surgery successful.

Good luck, and if you have any other questions, please let me know.  I'm more than willing to answer them for you.

Cheers,

John

Welcome to your life changing journey. I was refered July 2012. Orientation Feb 25th Hamilton, requisition for blood work and ultra sound and ECG came in mail 1 month later. Do not snore so no sleep study. Aug 21 dietician and social worker went over blood work and given vitamin schedule. Sept 5th Throat Scope, Oct 9th was to meet with internist apt cancelled called me in to sign concent for surgery Oct 3rd did nutrition class same day RUN Oct 9th down 45 lbs Dr anvari. Not looking back. Never waited more than 10 min for apt and when came early quite often seen me a head of time.