Hi all,

I'm basically starting out on this adventure.

*I went to the mandatory seminar on 10/7.

*Visited with my PCP for the preauth/referral my insurance requires on 10/16.

*Had the psychological evaluation on 10/24.

There was a quick turnaround on that being sent to OSU. I was told 2 weeks, but they already sent it off. OSU called me today to set up the nutritionist and medical evaluations for 11/19.

If you went thru this at OSU Wexner Medical.....

What did the nutritionist/medical appointments include?

Is there a requirement for monitored dieting before they will schedule?

Are those classes...BLAST, Life after surgery, etc....required? Before surgery?

As much info as you can share about the program would be appreciated.

-CV

Hi I didn't have my surgery at OSU but I did start out there. The Blast classes are necessary. If you would choose Mt Carmel or Riverside they will require their own type of Blast classes. It seems so unimportant when you are going through the approvals. I will say I was always saying really is it going to be like that,,,,Well I can say I am so happy I went through the program at Mt. Carmel. I have to say I read some of the comments of what people are aloud to eat so early after surgery. I am thrilled that the Nut. has the program they do at Mt, Carmel. I have had an easy time so far. I have had a few issues with eating too fast. But I have not had any trouble so long as I stayed on program. So important for success! Also, I am learning more and more about learning new ways to think about food. If you don't change this it will make it a struggle. Also you have a chance to not learn the techniques we should learn now. I hear 3 years out .... if you don't know them it can get harder to stay on program. Wish you luck with your journey no matter where you go.

Hello TheSpoonieLife! I'm going through OSUWMC too, but I'm in about the same stage as you in the process, so I can't help with all of your questions. I had the psychological evaluation on 10/20 and haven't scheduled my nutritionist/medical evaluations yet.

As far as the requirement for monitored dieting before surgery, I think that depends on your insurance. I have OSU insurance and I am required a 6 month supervised diet program before surgery. However, it is required by the insurance, not the Bariatric Program itself.

Sorry I don't have many answers, but I wanted to at least say Hi!

Wow....so great that we are on the same track! When they call you about your evaluations, ask them to put you on the cancellation list! I'm 4th in line right now, but hey....there's always a chance! I really don't want to wait until the 19th. I'm sure anyone who is going thru this wants to go as soon as possible! ❤️

Yes, we have been on the same track -

My Physician Referral was Sept. 15th (looking into surgery was his idea)

I went to the Information Session Sept. 25th

Psychological Evaluation Oct 20th

Bonus evaluations/orientation for the Living Well 6 month Diet program Nov 12th & 19th

Clinic Evaluation December 3rd

Ah, asking for the cancellation list is a good idea. I called today to schedule my appointment and My eval is Dec. 3rd. I'm going to have a monster list of questions to ask by then! However, since I have the six month diet requirement I suppose is no hurry, its going to be at least six months!

I really, really hope I don't have to do a six month diet ahead of time. I know my insurance doesn't require it.

Since your insurance doesn't require it, you won't have to worry about it. The six month diet is not a requirement for the OSU program, just my insurance. There are some education classes related to the surgery that you're required to take, but that's it. No diet needed.

How did you get signed up for the classes before having the nutrition/medical evaluations? When I call to ask that stuff, I get a hard, "We will schedule you for everything after the psych evaluation is returned to us."

Do you know if those classes are required before surgery or can they be as you go? I found a handout online that says the blast classes take six months?

Edited October 30, 201411 yr by TheSpoonieLife

When I called to sign up for Living Well, they did say when I called that they usually wait until after the evaluation at the Bariatric Clinic to schedule Living Well, to see if it is recommended by the clinic. But they went ahead and scheduled me because it's required by my insurance. I'm glad they did, since my appointment at the clinic isn't until December, I probably wouldn't have gotten started with Living Well until January. I'm really hoping to have the surgery this summer while my daughter is out of school so I won't have to worry about getting her up and ready for school while I'm recovering.

I think I found the BLAST handout you are talking about and you're right it does say one meeting a month for six months. I don't know anything for sure, but I wonder if there are different levels of classes depending on insurance requirements and patient need. The "Steps to Bariatric Surgery" on the OSUMC website says to attend weight management programs and lists BLAST, Life After Surgery, Living Well or Healthy Living. I wonder if you can take Life After Surgery, which may not take 6 months, instead of BLAST. I can't find anything that says how long the Life After Surgery program is. This, of course is all guessing, you'll know a lot more than me in a couple of weeks.

Maybe we need to go to another information session while waiting on our appointments so we don't explode from too many questions.

That's a good idea....maybe we should! Lol

Yes! The Steps to Bariatric Surgery page is where I found all the different info packets. Some of the info seems to be out of order from what they say when you call.

Hello @@TheSpoonieLife! I hope your visit at the clinic went well!

Thank you! It went very well! I have two tests I need to have done. They are submitting to my insurance asap...I have no requirements from my insurance, so I should be scheduled pretty quickly! How are you doing?

That is awesome! I'm glad you're getting moved along quickly! My process is going smoothly. I had a two-part evaluation for the Living Well Program and I'm finished with that. I start my first weekly class on 11/24 and I'll have classes until 05/04/2015. They scheduled me for a 4 week "Life After Bariatric Surgery" class in April 2015, so once I'm done with my last Living Well class my file will be ready to submit to insurance. I have my evaluation at the Bariatric Clinic on 12/03, so it's right around the corner.

Have you had the test where they put a scope down your throat yet? I'm kind of scared!

I have not had that test yet. It sounds like it could be a bit uncomfortable. I'm not sure what tests I'll need quite yet, but I'm sure it will be on my list of things to do soon.

Good luck when you have the test, is it scheduled yet?

No, not yet. I was sitting wondering why they haven't called me yet. They said they'll put me in a twilight sleep. I've had that before when I had surgery on my hand to remove a cyst and woke up three times. I'm asking for a double dose this time! Lol