Weight loss clinic treating obese patients from Ulster
TWENTY NHS patients have travelled to Birmingham from Northern Ireland to receive specialist treatment for obesity at a private clinic.
Vita Clinics in Edgbaston has opened its doors to offer six-month weight management courses, for £500, or surgery, such as gastric banding and gastric bypasses, from between £6,750 and £10,000.
The clinic is staffed by dieticians, physicians, nurses, surgeons and psychologists. Many patients will be referred by their GPs.
Northern Ireland has already sent 20 patients to the Birmingham clinic because the NHS there is struggling to keep up with the demand for treatment. Its arrival in the city comes as more people than ever are classed as overweight or clinically obese.
David Allison, Birmingham clinic manager, said surgery was not a quick fix and patients were there as a last resort after failing to shed the pounds with diet and exercise.
“Being obese can be so restrictive to people’s lifestyles, stopping them from doing all sorts of normal day-to-day activities, not to mention the extreme associated health risks,” he said.
“Many people don’t know how to start losing their excess weight and, more importantly how to keep it off in the long term.”
Latest figures show that obesity is costing Birmingham health services more than £300 million a year.
More people are resorting to surgery as the number of gastric band-type operations has soared by 1,000 per cent in the past 10 years in the West Midlands.
Mr Allison said: “We have a current generation of adults who, without specialist medical or surgical treatment, will die early from their obesity – as much as nine years early.”
He said that obesity-related diseases, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma, can be “cured” by losing weight.
One in four adults in the UK is classified as obese, that is they have a BMI (body mass index) of more than 30. If this continues, nearly 60 per cent of the UK population could be obese by 2050.
About 8,000 surgical procedures, such as gastric bands and bypasses, are carried out every year.
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I had the Gastic Bypass surgery. I am so grateful. I was obese, unattractive, couldn’t walk, tired all the time, bad tempered, not sleeping, etc and from my very first appointment with the Clinic the Staff were/are wonderful. They put me at ease from the word go, gave me my booklet explaining what exactly my surgery would entail etc. The booklet was fantastic, in fact it went into so much detail I didnt feel the need to ask any further questions, as everything I had wanted to know was in it and I still have the booklet for reference. My surgery went well and I didnt have any complications. In one day and out the next. The clinic staff called with me every day at the hotel. I cannot praise the staff enough. I get check ups every 4-6 weeks. I get phoned at least once a week by a member of staff who just checks in that you’re ok, diet going well, offering advice, etc. I feel that the staff are like friends that I can laugh and chat to, which I feel is very important for me mentally and physically as I can talk to them about anything. I have recommened this surgery to my Brother and Mother who are both in the process of getting seen to see if they are fit for surgery as my surgeon mentioned my weight problem may be heriditary as there are so many overweight people in the family tree and others in the family who are “normal”. Another friend ‘F’ who is also being assessed and hopefully will get surgery soon asked was I afraid of the anaesthetic. No. I could be run over by a bus etc. I cannot thank the Staff & Clinic enough for giving me all the help, advice, care etc but most of all I can’t thank them enough for giving me my life back. I got my op on Friday 13th February and have in 6wks lost 3st. So thank you to the Receptionists, Dietitians, Nurses, Surgeon, and everyone else who was involved. Thank you for putting together an extremely well informed booklet (that was easy to read and understand), diet, follow up, care,friendship etc, you’ve been wonderful, Love Linda x
Thanks Linda for your kind words, we are very pleased that our surgery and aftercare is proving so successful. It’s great to think that we are literally changing people’s lives and we are looking forward to helping your brother and mother too. Best wishes, Lucie