Bon Secours Surgical Weight Loss Center Named Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence
ASBS approval underscores the center’s excellence in surgical weight loss 

Portsmouth, Va. (January 3, 2007) – Bon Secours Maryview Medical Center’s Surgical Weight Loss Center has been named an American Society For Bariatric Surgery (ASBS) Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the Surgical Review Corporation.  ASBS is an organization dedicated to pursuing surgical excellence in the delivery of bariatric surgical care. Bon Secours Maryview Medical Center received full, three-year approval – the highest rating available – and is designated by the ASBS as a center of excellence.

“The Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence status is an affirmation of the high quality, comprehensive program Bon Secours is committed to providing our community,” said Susan A. MacLeod, executive vice president/administrator, Bon Secours Maryview Medical Center.   “We are very proud of the team’s accomplishment.  It is through our collaboration with expert surgeons from Tidewater Surgical Specialists, medical director Dr. David D. Spencer and Dr. Glen Moore, that makes this service possible.”  

To be eligible for ASBS designation, hospitals must perform at least 125 bariatric surgeries annually, and individual surgeons must perform at least 50 surgeries a year.  Annually, the surgical team at Bon Secours Surgical Weight Loss Center performs more than 300 Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgeries with more than 98% of the cases performed using the laparoscopic, or minimally invasive, approach.  

“Bariatric surgery is a complex and challenging undertaking.  It is important to note that this distinction is a confirmation of our commitment to meet the unique needs of bariatric patients,” said Dr. David Spencer, medical director, Bon Secours Surgical Weight Loss Center. “In addition to offering minimally invasive surgical weight loss procedures, our program focuses on the elements necessary to help our patients achieve sustainable, life-long weight loss.”      

A significant part of the Center of Excellence application involved evaluation of the comprehensive nature of the program. Each of the center’s protocols were evaluated including: ongoing contact with the patient’s primary care physician; the nutritional education model, which includes a registered dietician specializing in surgical weight loss; the physiological evaluation; support groups; as well as on going staff education related to understanding the special needs of morbidly obese patients.  In addition, the center was evaluated for the process to provide life-long support.   

The ASBS approval process involved a thorough inspection of Bon Secours Maryview which included: a tour of its surgical and in-patient care facilities; evaluation of the surgical weight loss center; review of the quality of care procedures; and interviews with physicians, medical center administrators and patient care staff.

The Bon Secours Surgical Weight Loss Center is one of southeastern Virginia’s leading surgical weight loss programs for individuals suffering from morbid obesity.  A multi-disciplinary team of medical specialists provides comprehensive care for the whole person that involves psychological evaluations, nutritional and physical evaluations, counseling, support groups and long-term coordination of care, including life-long follow up.          

According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the number of U.S. bariatric surgeries more than quadrupled between 1998 and 2002 – from 13,386 to 71,733.  Bariatric surgery helps those who are morbidly obese lose weight when all other methods have failed. Obesity has become a significant national health issue, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting that 65 percent of all U.S. adults are overweight or obese. Morbid obesity is closely correlated with a number of serious conditions that severely undermine the health of overweight patients, including heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Bon Secours Surgical Weight Loss Center offers specially designed equipment, patient education and comprehensive patient care plans to accommodate and support weight loss surgery patients. The approach taken by the surgical team focuses on a patient's complete health and achieving permanent weight loss. This includes psychological, nutritional and physical evaluations, counseling, support groups and long-term coordination of care.