Question:
Has anyone had to dietician and phych appt before they saw surgeon.
It's driving me crazy i still have not seen a surgeon yet my insurance wants me to phych evaluation and dieticain before I can even see a surgeon. Am worryed that I will never see one. — sheri B. (posted on June 1, 2002)
June 1, 2002
I had to see a lot of other specialists before I saw my surgeon. I believe
it's because your ins company wants to make sure that you are of sound mind
for surgery. They want to know that you are not having this surgery because
you want to be a rock star, but rather to be healthy. I know the wait is
long, but your right on track. Good Luck to you.
— Sarah K.
June 1, 2002
My surgeon's appontment is two days away. I first started this in February
with my PCP. Because the waiting was so long I went ahead and made my psyc.
and nutr. appointments so they would be out of the way. That way when I do
see my surgeon we will be ready to petition the insurance co.. I have read
that they want you to see the psych. to see that you have realistic
expectations of the surgery. The reason for the nutritionist is to make
sure that you know what kind of diet you will be on after surgery. Good
Luck.
— angela D.
June 1, 2002
I thought the psych and the nutritional evals were fun. The nutritionist
will assess your current eating habits and explain what changes you will
need to make after surgery both in terms of what you will tolerate and what
you need to aim for to meet your nutritional needs. The psych eval is from
someone who knows where a fat person is coming from. She just wants to
know you aren't doing 'magical thinking' such as imagining that if you are
thin you will be happy all the time and never have any more problems. She
wants to see if you are realistic in your expectations. These evals are
helpful even if you don't do surgery.
— Bobbi G.
June 1, 2002
I had my psych evaluation and nutrientist meeting a few months before my
actual consultation. When I had those appointment I didn't even have a
specific consultation date. I have since had consultation and am currentyl
waiting for insurance approval. Because I went ahead and got those
appointments out of the way I had more info to submitt for approval and it
will take less time to get a date after approval. Have faith, you will get
a consult, and doing your oppointments helps to kill time during the wait.
God Bless.
— Kicker
June 1, 2002
Yes i did the diet. and phsy evaulation first, was required by my surgeon
before I even got to see him, no big deal because after I saw him my
insurance was submit and approved in 48 hr.
— paulsgirl
June 1, 2002
My journey starded in December. Had to see Psychiatrist, Dietitian, had
colonoscopy, endoscopy, sleep study, abdominal ultrasound, cardiac
ultrasound to name a few, just saw the Surgeon on 23rd and waiting to hear
from my insurance to tell me they have approved. It's been a long road but
worth it. Bev in Florida
— Beverly M.
June 1, 2002
I did the same thing. When the surgeon gave me the list of pre-op
requirements, it was nice to have done almost half of them already.
— Marti R.
June 1, 2002
I had to see a dietician as well as a psych to be given the go ahead for
the surgery. I had already seen the surgeon who gave me those two names to
see before he'd say yes to the surgery. The dietician was awesome, the
psych was a waste of time. I think I saw him for all of 15 mins, and he
told me he didn't have anything else to say to me except good luck on the
surgery. I guess he was impressed at how much I knew about the surgery and
post surgery recovery as well as the fact I had already stocked up my
cupboards with the things I could have after the surgery. I am sure they
run into people who are not motivated or maybe who have no idea what this
really entails.
— Louise M.
February 22, 2003
At Northwester Memorial Hospital in Chicago you must be "cleared"
medically for surgery before you can be seen by a surgeon. This is done by
the Wellness Center Team. You see an initial physician, dietition have a
psych eval and depending on your physical/medical comorbidities other
testing. My husband and I both had pulmonary function tests, sleep studies
and my husband had a venous Doppler due to a blood clot a year early. They
wanted to check the status of the clot. After all the preliminary work is
done and the team determines you are a candidate for surgery the refer you
to the gastroenterology surgery department. There are specific surgeons
who only do the open/lap RNY. They also determine which one you can have.
A BMI higher than 55 and you must have the open. From research I've done
and what I've read from others, this seems to be the most efficient and
best way to be approved for GBS. We are now waiting insurance approval.
— Tanya W.
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