Patient Resources
At the Center for Surgical Weight Loss at Santa Rosa, we aim to ease your fears surrounding weight loss surgery. Our dedicated program includes a specially trained team of professionals who will work closely with you and your primary care physician to create a personalized plan that promotes your physical and emotional well-being.
Step One: Attend a Free Seminar
It is necessary to attend one of our free educational seminars to help you determine if weight loss surgery is right for you. The interactive session with the surgeon and members of the bariatric team includes discussion about the program, also questions and answers regarding care and the insurance process.
Online Bariatric Seminar
Step Two: Call Your Insurance Company
Check to make sure weight loss surgery is covered by your plan. Criteria for coverage will vary among insurance companies. Below are some questions you may ask your insurance company to determine eligibility.
- Is weight loss surgery covered under my insurance plan?
- Which of these operation codes are covered: Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy 43775 or Gastric Bypass 43644?
- Do I need to complete a medically supervised diet? If yes, for how long?
Step Three: Meet with the Surgeon
After completing the online seminar and deciding that this is something you would like to pursue, please call the office to schedule an appointment with the surgeon. During the consultation, the doctor will have an opportunity to go through your medical history, decide which surgery is best for you and discuss your desires and expectations regarding weight loss surgery.
Step Four: Attend Consultations
To meet established guidelines for weight loss surgery, consultations with a registered dietitian, cardiologist, pulmonologist and a behavioral health specialist are required. These consultations will help to prepare you for the rigors of weight loss surgery. Other consultations may be deemed necessary by the surgeon based on your medical history.
To schedule your consultations, please call (850) 626-5121.
Step Five: Pre-operative Appointments
You are moving forward with surgery and to prepare you for your new beginning, will need to attend the following appointments:
- Support Group - Meets the first Thursday of every month and gives you an opportunity to network with both pre- and post-surgical clients.
- Workshop - Pre-operative education with the program's bariatric coordinator and registered dietitian.
- Pre-operative Testing - To complete necessary laboratory and diagnostic testing, as well as meet with a member of the anesthesia team.
Resources
- For your first appointment, please bring:
- Medical information - Please bring copies of any letters or medical records from other health care providers. Medical records for the past 5 years are necessary to file for insurance and to give the doctors a complete medical history.
- Physician recommendation - If filing for insurance, please provide a written recommendation for weight-loss surgery from your primary care physician.
- Diet/weight-loss info - Any documentation proving you participated in any diet/weight loss attempts. (This includes office notes, receipts or prescriptions.)
- Insurance card
- Driver's license
- Physician referral - If your insurance plan requires a referral for this consultation, please contact your primary care physician and have one faxed to our office fax at (850) 626-2133 before your appointment.
- If you are traveling for surgery, the following links may be helpful:
- We offer convenient self-pay packages that include:
- Surgeon fee, including initial consultation, personalized seminar and one year follow up
- Hospital fee, including preoperative labs, EKG, upper GI series and postoperative upper GI series
- Anesthesia fee
- BLIS insurance, complication insurance
- Preoperative liquid diet
We want to assist you throughout the process. If you have any questions, please call our office at (850) 626-5121 so we can be of service.