My toe's in the water: the initial visit

Jun 04, 2009

I was surprised when things went smoothly; the only hiccup was a misunderstanding about an unusual insurance track record that I've been dealing with this year. I am currently under Tricare Prime, the umbrella that I've had over me as a military dependent all of my life. When I turned 21 in February and was no longer a full-time college student, I lost the coverage. After paying for a quarter of CHCBP (Humana Military's Continued Health Care Benefits Program), I was covered for three months before I was reinstated as a special circumstance after submitting some paperwork pertaining to my personal situation. After explaining this to the nurse who handles insurance issues (in so many words), I was taken straight through my first visit with swiftness.

It was the usual after being called back. Height (5'8"), weight (284 pounds--yowch), blood pressure, and temperature. After that, I was shown to a room where I would wait to meet with the surgeon for a short one-on-one about my physiological eligibility and overall decision to have this surgery. I have chosen the Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass method. I had my 'before' photo taken, was lightly examined, and explained to about my surgeon's experience and credentials. I'd known as much from the seminar I attended in February of this year; he spoke, as well as much of the team I subsequently met yesterday at the initial appointment. I feel as though I am in good hands. I trust Dr. Lord and was reassured by the staff; two of the women I met had undergone this particular surgery and look stunningly different from their hospital ID tags.

My insurance policy pays 100% of the hospital and sugery fees. I was responsible for a non-refundable $500 program fee (which includes the pre-op education materials and consultations), which I payed reluctantly but have awoken the day after feeling no regret for. Here is a breakdown of the materials I was given immediately and what is required of me before scheduling an actual surgery date:

Educational Materials:

- Three-ring hard-cover binder with divided sections for easy references for patients to read through. Eligibility, insurance/fees, surgical methods, diet and nutrition, and other resources are included. I am assuming that since I must carry this program book with me to all of the consultations (I'm even subject to a $25 replacement charge if I lose it), the literature will be referred to.

Tests:

- Chest X-ray
- EKG
- Upper Endoscopy (for which the x-ray and EKG are pre-requisites)
- Blood drawn and tested for a variety of different things
- Ultrasound

Consultations (what the $500 program fee is for):

- Nutrition orientation (1 hr)
- Psychological evaluation (1.5 hrs)
- Behavior Modification (2 hrs)

I require no supervised diet nor a letter of necessity. Once I have cleared all my consultations and the testing is finished and deemed acceptable by Dr. Lord, I will be ready for a surgery date.




The Sacred Heart Institute for Surgical Weight Loss is a clean, quiet office staffed with friendly and knowledgeable personnel. They speak realistically about the risks of morbid obesity itself, those of not having the surgery, and of course, the risks of having the surgery. I was speaking to nurses who have had the surgery and are living post-op lifestyles. They look great and speak very highly of Dr. Lord's Bariatric program.

So far, I have met with these people twice--once at the informational seminar and again at the appointment yesterday; they know what they are doing, as is appropriate for a Center of Excellence. I have spent more than half a year preparing myself for my final decision and feel confident about beginning this journey.

I'll be writing again as I go along...

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