Cathy Minder has lost 111 pounds since her gastric sleeve surgery with Dr. Rizwan Chaudhry at Bay Area Regional Medical Center.
Patients seeking surgical treatment for severe obesity and its related conditions have a high-quality choice for receiving treatment at a nationally accredited program that meets the highest standards for patient safety and quality of care in the Houston Bay Area.
Rizwan Chaudhry, M.D., Medical Director of the Metabolic and Weight Loss Institute at Bay Area Regional Medical Center, today announced its bariatric surgical center has been accredited as a Comprehensive Center under the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program (MBSAQIP®), a joint program of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS).
The MBSAQIP Standards ensure that bariatric surgical patients receive a multidisciplinary program, not just a surgical procedure, which improves patient outcomes and long-term success. The accredited center offers preoperative and postoperative care designed specifically for their severely obese patients.
“This accreditation places Bay Area Regional and the multidisciplinary team at an elite status for bariatric surgery and I’m excited to be a part of a team that focuses on patients individually with their long-term success as the goal,” stated Rizwan Chaudhry, M.D.
Bay Area Regional’s commitment to quality care begins with appropriately trained staff and the leadership surgeons who participate in meetings throughout the year to review its outcomes. They seek continuous improvement to enhance the structure, process and outcomes of the center.
To earn the MBSAQIP designation, Bay Area Regional met essential criteria for staffing, training and facility infrastructure and protocols for care, ensuring its ability to support patients with severe obesity. The center also participates in a national data registry that yields semiannual reports on the quality of its processes and outcomes, identifying opportunities for continuous quality improvement.
“We are proud to be leading the way in bariatric surgery with Dr. Chaudhry as the only fellowship-trained bariatric surgeon in the Houston Bay Area,” said Tim Schmidt, CEO of Bay Area Regional. “Achieving the national accreditation as a Comprehensive Center for bariatric surgery shows our commitment to providing exceptional care and making a difference in people’s lives.”
After submitting an application, centers seeking MBSAQIP Accreditation undergo an extensive site visit by an experienced bariatric surgeon, who reviews the center’s structure, process, and clinical outcomes data. Centers are awarded a specific designation depending on how many patients it serves annually, the type of procedures it provides, and whether it provides care for patients under age 18.
In the United States, around 15.5 million people suffer from severe obesity, according to the National Institutes of Health, and the numbers continue to increase. Obesity increases the risks of morbidity and mortality because of the diseases and conditions that are commonly associated with it, such as type II diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease, among other health risks. Metabolic and bariatric surgical procedures have proven to be effective in the reduction of comorbid conditions related to severe obesity.* Working with ASMBS, the ACS expanded this quality program for bariatric surgery centers so that it can assist bariatric patients in identifying those centers that provide optimal surgical care.
About Bay Area Regional Medical Center
Bay Area Regional Medical Center is committed to providing the highest quality medical care while making a difference in people’s lives. Designed with a beautiful, soothing environment, Bay Area Regional offers some of the latest technology for physicians to provide advanced diagnostic and treatment techniques. With a focus on excellence, Bay Area Regional is the first hospital in the Houston area to achieve the highest level Chest Pain Center Accreditation, the first hospital in Texas to be named a Center of Excellence for Hidden Scar, and the first hospital to perform the non-surgical gastric balloon procedure in the Houston Bay Area. Since opening in July 2014, Bay Area Regional has received accreditation from the Joint Commission and is in active pursuit of Level III Trauma Designation with services such as heart and vascular services, general surgery, orthopedics, emergency services, surgical weight-loss, outpatient imaging, including 3D Mammography and much more. For more information about Bay Area Regional Medical Center or to find a physician, visit www.BARMC.us.
About the American College of Surgeons
The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational association of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical education and practice and to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient. Its achievements have placed it at the forefront of American surgery and have made the College an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 80,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world.
About the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery
The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, founded in 1983, was formed to advance the art and science of metabolic and bariatric surgery by continually improving the quality and safety of care and treatment of people with obesity and related diseases through educational and support programs for surgeons and integrated health professionals.
