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 The
Regional Bariatric Care Centre, is an integrated Regional
Assessment and Treatment Centre for the pre and post-operative
care of patients with obesity requiring gastric bypass surgery.
Our goal is to assess and treat patients of North Western
Ontario by implementing strategies, standards and protocols
developed in conjunction with the Ontario Bariatric Network
and approved by the Ministry of Health. Our interdisciplinary
group will not only prepare patients for a safe surgery but
also provide intensive post-operative management to reduce
both early and late complications of the disease.
Obesity holds no boundaries and it can affect anyone of any
age, culture or income bracket. The design and focus of the
Care Centre is a step forward for our region in terms of improving
our ability to manage obesity and its comorbidities. Northwestern
Ontario, has the second-highest obesity rate of any region
in Ontario and almost one in four struggle with obesity.
We are a member of the Ontario Bariatric Network, with representation
on the Ontario Bariatric Network Advisory Group. We work in
collaboration with the surgeons at St. Joseph’s Healthcare,
Hamilton as well as other Ontario Bariatric Surgery Centres
of Excellence, where the surgery is performed.
We are a Centre that has established strong telemedicine
links throughout Northern Ontario, as well with our provincial
partners, to assist with assessment and follow-up in remote
sites, to enable patients to be closer to home, travel less
and still meet their assessment goals.
The Bariatric Care Centre was the first new service to be
built at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre from
the ground-up following the philosophy and practice of Patient
and Family Centred Care. Our Patient Family Advisor, was extensively
involved in every aspect of program development, from the
design of the space, the choice of equipment used in the Care
Centre and the care pathway for patients. They remain an integral
part of the team, joining the Care Centre staff on a regular
basis for Interdisciplinary rounds and lending their experience
as a patient.
The Referral Process:
As of October 8th 2010, all patient referrals must be
processed through the Ontario Bariatric Registry. The aim
of the Ontario-based Bariatric Registry project is to improve
the care of patients with obesity and increase the effectiveness
of health care dollars. The centralized referral process will
collect standard referral data on all patients, and direct
their referral to their nearest bariatric centre.
If you are interested in our services, please have your Primary
Care Provider refer you to our clinic through the Ontario
Bariatric Registry at www.ontariobariatricregistry.ca.
All patients must be assessed at a Bariatric Centre before
receiving bariatric treatment.
*Provincial wait times from referral to surgery are approximately
1 year
The Ontario Bariatric Network
 For
further information about weight loss surgery and The Ontario
Bariatric Network please visit www.ontariobariatricnetwork.ca
Facts about our Care Centre:
- The Centre is the second Regional Assessment and
Treatment Centre in the province and the first in
Northern Ontario, which work together with the five
Centres of Excellence to provide treatment options
for obesity.
- We are a member of the Ontario Bariatric Network
and have a seat on the Provincial Bariatric Advisory
Board.
- The Care Centre is built with an interdisciplinary
focus to provide optimum care to patients facing
obesity. There are 7.5 FTE employed by the Care
Centre, including a Nurse Practitioner, Psychologist,
Social Worker, Kinesiologist as well as two Registered
Dietitians, Clerical and Managerial support.
- The Care Centre is supported by a Medical Director.
The Department of Internal Medicine also collaborates
with Care Centre staff to ensure that a patient
is ready for surgery and has appropriate follow-up
and medical management post-surgery.
- The purpose of the Care Centre is to assess and
prepare patients for Bariatric Surgery. The surgery
will then be performed at a Centre of Excellence,
St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton, Ontario,
which is our primary referral site. The Care Centre
then follows post-surgical patients for at least
five years to ensure long-term success.
- The Care Centre was built with the assumption
of seeing 225 new referrals in the first year of
operation and 200 every year after that.
- The assessment and follow-up process for each
patient is very intense and the workload is great.
Each patient who proceeds to surgery is then followed
for five years and can expect to visit the Care
Centre 12 times on average.
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Contact Information:
Thunder Bay Regional Bariatric Care Centre
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre
Medical Building, Suite 104
984 Oliver Road
Thunder Bay, Ontario
Canada P7B 6V4
Telephone: (807) 684-6058
Fax: (807) 344-7910
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