Medical Program

Regional Bariatric Care Centre - Medical Program

The Medical Program is a medically supervised program, which includes a combination of meal replacements and weekly education and support to incorporate healthy lifestyle changes.  The goal of the program is to help patients achieve a healthier state of wellness by providing knowledge and skills to explore eating and coping behaviours, and to promote healthy eating, physical activity and healthy living.

Eligibility for the Medical Program

Eligibility criteria for the Medical Program include:

• 18 years of age and older (allow referrals at age >= 17.5 years)
• Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than, or equal to 35
• BMI greater than or equal to 30, but less than 35. With at least one of the following co-morbidities (as determined by your primary care provider):
  • Complicated Type II diabetes mellitus
  • Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (high blood pressure)
  • Poorly controlled hypertension (high blood pressure)

Ineligibility for the Medical Program

Ineligibility criteria for the Medical Program include (but are not limited to):

• Current drug or alcohol dependency (within 6 months of referral)
• Recent major cancer (life threatening, within last 2 years) with active treatment where caloric restriction might exacerbate the condition
• Untreated or inadequately treated psychiatric illness

Medical Program Frequently Asked Questions

Medical Program – What to Expect

Once you are referred to the Medical Program, our program clerks will start coordinating your journey.  You will be contacted to attend an orientation to learn if the Medical Program is a suitable option for you.  If you choose the Medical Program you will attend an medical intake with our nurse practitioner who medically monitors all patients registered in the Medical Program.  You will be required to have bloodwork and an electrocardiogram (ECG), and you may have to do other test(s) to make sure you are safe to proceed with medically supervised weight loss.   There will be many opportunities to ask questions at the orientation or with the nurse practitioner.  You are welcome to bring a support person to any of the appointments.

The program involves a commitment to attending group sessions weekly for six months and then monthly for an additional six months, for a total of a one year commitment.  In addition to the group sessions you are expected to attend regular appointments with the nurse practitioner who will medically monitor your outcomes and progress.  Weekly classes are done virtually, and some of the other appointments can be done virtually.  You want to make sure that when you are offered to start the program, that it is the right time to make this type of commitment (you can defer your start date once), as you can only participate in this program once.  Missing multiple appointments (medical appointments or group sessions) may result in discharge from the program.

During the weekly group sessions you will be encouraged to ask questions and participate in discussions.  Individual 1:1 support is provided as needed.

The weekly classes are provided by a dietitian, social worker and kinesiologist (exercise specialist).  The team also includes a medical director and Psychologist, who can be consulted as needed.