Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence

Exploring your weight loss options

One of the most difficult and personal decisions you can make is taking steps to reduce your weight with surgery. You may have struggled your entire life with unsuccessful dieting, have found it more difficult to do simple physical activities, or have seen an increase in conditions that make you at risk for serious physical problems.

Finding the right place and people to help you understand your options and support you through the weight loss process is an incredibly important part of deciding to have weight loss surgery.

Call the Weight Loss Program at Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford at 1-(781) 306-6166 to make an appointment today.

Making the decision

Weight loss surgery may not be for everyone. Determining if you are a candidate for surgical options is something you should discuss with your doctor, and consult specialists who can evaluate your current health and discuss whether or not weight loss surgery is right for you.

Ask yourself the following questions and talk through your answers with your primary care physician about the following: 

• What is your current health?
• Do you have any co-existing conditions compounding physical limitations or impacting your overall health?
• Have you tried and not seen long-term success with dieting?
• Do you have enough interest in maintaining a healthy lifestyle?
• Does being overweight impact your family life, ability to travel, and/or ability to socialize?
• Do you want to make a change in your lifestyle? If so, to what and why?

Your next step is to find a hospital that can provide you the options and support you need. View the videos in this section to learn more from Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford's weight loss expert Dr. Randal, who has completed over 5,000 weight loss surgeries.

Read Dr. Sheldon Randall's Biography

What is obesity?

Morbidly obese is a defined as being 100 pounds or more overweight or having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 40 or greater. If you have calculated your BMI, get fatigued easily during physical activity, and find it difficult to breathe; you should speak with your doctor about your current weight and the overall impact it is having on your health.

Differences between overweight and obese

Calculate your BMI

What are co-existing conditions?

Co-existing conditions can be diseases or systemic conditions that are a result from the additional weight.  

Examples of co-existing conditions are:

• High blood pressure
• Joint issues
• High cholesterol
• Diabetes
• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Sleep apnea

Visit the CDC for more health consequences

Surgical options at Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence - Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford

Patients are offered two options for weight loss surgery: traditional Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass and the Lap-Band procedure.

Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass
The Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass is the most commonly performed weight loss surgery procedure in the United States at this time. During surgery, a surgical stapling device is used to divide the upper stomach and create a tiny stomach "pouch" at the upper end. Full description

Lap-Band Surgery
The Lap-Band® system is the least invasive of all weight loss surgeries. The system includes an adjustable silicon elastomer band that is surgically placed around the stomach. The band induces weight loss by restricting food intake; when eating less, the body draws from its own fat to get the energy it needs. Full description

Why Lawrence Memorial Hospital

The staff at Lawrence Memorial Hospital is dedicated to providing you with the clinical expertise and patient-focused care you deserve. Designated as a Center of Excellence by the American Society for Bariatric Surgery, it was determined that Lawrence Memorial Hospital's bariatric program satisfactorily met the standards set forth to be designated as an ASBS Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence. In the United States, there are fewer than 300 hospitals designated as ASBS Bariatric Surgery Centers of Excellence.

People travel from all over the country based on word-of-mouth recommendations and reputation for being a center of excellence. The Lawrence Memorial Hospital Bariatric Center draws patients throughout New England and from states such as California, Texas, and New Mexico.

Unlike other programs, Lawrence Memorial Hospital is not a teaching hospital where you have less experienced doctors performing procedures under supervision. From the first consultation you are assigned a care specialist to help manage your experience and provide the quality of attention every patient deserves. The care specialist helps you take advantage of the special support groups designed to help you through the process and transition of this life changing procedure.

Another advantage is the surgeon that you have consulted with from the beginning will be your primary doctor all the way through recovery.

In addition, Lawrence Memorial Hospital was named to the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care's Hospital Honor Roll. No other hospital in the region received this distinction, which recognizes hospitals for high quality patient care. This honor ranks Lawrence Memorial Hospital among the top hospitals in New England. All of this begs the question: why go anywhere else for weight loss surgery when you can get exceptional quality, surgical expertise and leading edge medical care at the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Weight Loss Surgery Program.

Call the Weight Loss Program at Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford at 1-(781) 306-6166 to make an appointment today.