Hello Everyone

I am in the beginning stages of trying to obtain approval for surgery. The insurance I have is Kaiser and I am hoping to have surgery at the Fremont location. Can anyone give me an idea of what the process is at Kaiser? Are Options classes required? If so, how many? I had my pcp send a referral to the Bariatric Departement.

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Hello and welcome. I had my surgery in Northern California through Kaiser June 2015. I had mine done in Sacramento, and the East Bay may have some slight differences, but here are the steps

1. Introduction class- usually about an hr. Once you have decided you want to move further, let your PCP know and they will submit the referral to the bariatric department. They will then take up to 2 weeks to review your file and once you have been approved to move further in the process, they will call and schedule your first class with the surgeon

2. Bariatric class-this is an introductory course with the bariatric department that explains the entire process. You will be weighed prior to class and will get your appointment with the surgeon at the end of the class if you are wanting to move forward. You will also get a binder during that point...this will be your lifeline.

3. Nutrition class/Surgeon appointment- Depending on how far your appointment for the surgeon is, they may schedule the nutrition class first. From your bariatric class, you should be following the eating program inside your binder

4.Surgeon appointment- You will meet with the surgeon and they will go over your overall health and give you a pre-surgery weight goal. Once you are within 5 lbs of that goal you will have your next step. Make sure you weight in at Kaiser at least once a month

5. Psychological exam- Once you are within your 5 lbs, you will have to do blood work, ekg and be set up with your psych exam. Once you complete that, you are onto the next step

6. Nurse appointment- One you are at your goal weight, you will meet with the RN and they will schedule you for the pre-op class, final appointment with surgeon, surgery date, and post op dates. At this point, if you gain any weight, you will have to go through this process again

7. Pre-op class- goes over everything with the surgeon and a final look at your Vitamins

Let me know if you have any additional questions and I can help

Hi snickysnack78!

Thank you for taking the time to answer my question with such vital information!

Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App

Hello and welcome. I had my surgery in Northern California through Kaiser June 2015. I had mine done in Sacramento, and the East Bay may have some slight differences, but here are the steps

1. Introduction class- usually about an hr. Once you have decided you want to move further, let your PCP know and they will submit the referral to the bariatric department. They will then take up to 2 weeks to review your file and once you have been approved to move further in the process, they will call and schedule your first class with the surgeon

2. Bariatric class-this is an introductory course with the bariatric department that explains the entire process. You will be weighed prior to class and will get your appointment with the surgeon at the end of the class if you are wanting to move forward. You will also get a binder during that point...this will be your lifeline.

3. Nutrition class/Surgeon appointment- Depending on how far your appointment for the surgeon is, they may schedule the nutrition class first. From your bariatric class, you should be following the eating program inside your binder

4.Surgeon appointment- You will meet with the surgeon and they will go over your overall health and give you a pre-surgery weight goal. Once you are within 5 lbs of that goal you will have your next step. Make sure you weight in at Kaiser at least once a month

5. Psychological exam- Once you are within your 5 lbs, you will have to do blood work, ekg and be set up with your psych exam. Once you complete that, you are onto the next step

6. Nurse appointment- One you are at your goal weight, you will meet with the RN and they will schedule you for the pre-op class, final appointment with surgeon, surgery date, and post op dates. At this point, if you gain any weight, you will have to go through this process again

7. Pre-op class- goes over everything with the surgeon and a final look at your Vitamins

Let me know if you have any additional questions and I can help

Thank you for sharing. I have my Bariatric Orientation on Wednesday and I wanted to know what to expect.