No answers in BC.

Hello to all, I've been following this site off and on for several a years now, reading a lot of posts about people in BC Canada who have had the surgery. 

I applied for the surgery through my doctor and was told "6 months min to get a call of any kind" ....that was 18 months ago. 

In the past 18 months I've increased my body mass by 10% and been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. 

Since I'm getting both  impatient and alarmed, I emailed another bariatric clinic in Richmond BC about self pay options and received a friendly email back stating their wait list for surgery was under two years. They said "just get a referral from your doctor which I did. 

After waiting another month I emailed the Richmond clinic asking simply "did you receive the referral" the reply was three words "Ask your Doctor". I checked back with my doctor and he could not confirm that Richmond had received the referral. 

Now extreamly frustrated and increasingly concerned about my long term health I have contacted another clinic in Canada (out of province) I received a very friendly and caring phonecall within 1 week, and booked a consult phone call with the surgeon for next week. They also said we can do th surgery as early as September. 

Application fee $250

first payment $5000

Final amount including above costs $19500.00

Yes I know .... Its pretty steep but it's better than waiting up  twelve years for our broken system here in BC. 

I guess I'm venting but the system here is frustrating to navigate and clearly broken if it takes up to 12 years!!!

I don't think I have 12 years to wait.

Wow I can't even imagine. There is a BC Forum so you may get answers there. We have a fairly good system here in Ontario, but it still takes anywhere from 6 months to 2 years for surgery. There seems to be inconsistencies between centres too in that some centres seem to be faster than others.

Is there another centre in BC you could check in with?

Hi Daizymom thanks for the reply, I think Ontario has a better grip on this than BC does. 

Yes ive tried two centers so far: 

my GP referred me to the Victoria bariatric center but no response yet 18 months has gone by. 

I emailed the Richmond bariatric center asking about self pay options and received a friendly and encouraging emailed response saying that they were averaging two years in Richmond, so I had my GP send a referral to them as well. After a Couple of weeks I followed up to confirm that they received the referral. An unanswered phone message and an email later ... The reply was "Ask your Doctor" . Subsequent follow up by my GP and apparently still no response. waited another month called clinic in Quebec... Received a prompt, very warm and friendly response: the person on the other end treated me with professionalism and dignity. 

So I have a phone appointment with the surgeon on the 24th 

going to explore Tijuana Bariatric as well. 

There is a Mexico forum here as well so you could check out other people's experiences. As long as it's very reputable with supporting reviews and follow up care, why not? 

Here's the link to the BC Forum:

http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/BC/

I feel for you, I'm also on the waitlist in Victoria BC.

I can tell you that right now the time from initial referral to surgery is approximately 3 years. Not sure where you heard 12 years but that is definitely not realistic at this time.

It has been a nightmare waiting, especially because no one even makes contact with you for the first 18 months or so.

My health has also declined since my referral but I have used this time to educate myself, build a support network, change bad habits and lose a little bit of weight.

I know it's hard but you are very close to getting a call now. You will be invited to an orientation, then get an assessment a few months later and then meet with the surgeon.

Hang in there, your time will come!

Thanks for the encouragement AnImperfectAngel! 

I'm at the 18mo point now, and I agree it's definitely hard to wait...  and being in the dark makes it worse... It's hard to stay positive.  

Ive been down this road before with my wife and father in law who have both had GBP back when it was only self pay and minimal wait times so it seems like BC has really messed it up! 

The 12 year figure came from my GP as he was reading from his computer screen. I think it went something like ... 

- Answer after referral - up to  2 years for evaluation for eligibility 

- 2-3 more years for prep 

- 2-3 more years for booking of surgery 

• if they deem you "not ready" it could be up to 2-4 more years to wait.

I may be a little off but the GP added it all up for me and said "this could take as  long as 12 years".

Self pay in Quebec says "we can book you for Sept 15 2016" if you decide you want to do it and are healthy enough for surgery. 

It seems like pure insanity to me.... Makes me wonder what is BC doing wrong???? 

Even though Canada has stated that obesity is a disease, wls is grossly underfunded at least in BC.

Unfortunately, the bariatric surgeons are only given so many hours in the operating room based on funding which changes all the time which is why no one can give you an exact date.

It's enough to make you crazy. In the meantime, people with obesity continue to see their health decline and cost the system a ton of more money. It's ridiculous and beyond frustrating.

If you can afford the surgery now elsewhere, you may want to pursue it but in my opinion, you will likely get your surgery within the next year if you are deemed ready.

Hope this helps. Don't give up!

Would you consider going out of the country for surgery? I live in BC as well and I didn't want to wait to have surgery so I went to Mexico in January and had my surgery with Dr. Fernando Garcia through Tijuana Bariatrics. The cost of my surgery was $4,250 USD and the care I received there was better than the care I've received in hospital here with previous surgeries. It was a scary thought to go to Mexico at first but I did my research and was confident with the decision I made. I am so glad I did it as it was the best decision I have ever made for myself. If you don't want to wait or pay $20,000 for surgery, maybe consider going out of country. Best of luck with everything!

Thanks Sammy_85 

yes I am thinking of Mexico but worried about complications. I'm wondering if I have troubles post-op will BC leave me twisting in the wind because I didn't get it done here. 

Your words are encouraging me to look harder at Mexico.