Obesity op policy slammed

9:45am Thursday 21st June 2007

STOMACH stapling operations have been brought back to North Yorkshire - but the bar has been set so high many patients are unlikely to get one, despite being clinically obese.

Strict new guidelines have been issued by the county's primary care trust on which patients will get priority for stomach surgery.

Patients will be given priority if their Body Mass Index (BMI) is over 50 - a level classified by the Government as "extremely obese". But, under national guidelines, patients should get the operation if their BMI is ten points under this - provided they meet other criteria, such as being fit for surgery.

Neighbouring PCTs in Leeds and East Yorkshire follow these guidelines, which means the surgery is more readily available for patients living there than it is in this county.

Philip Cooper, of Woodthorpe, York, fears his clinical obesity and diabetes could kill him by the time he is 60 unless he gets the operation.

Aged 40, he weighs just over 20 stone. His BMI measures just over 45 - lower than the current priority level.

Philip said: "If these are new guidelines, there's not a lot I can do is there? If you can pay, you can get these things, but if you can't, you can't. For me, it isn't cosmetic. I've got a dog now, I go out walking my dog, I don't drink."

Philip has now been waiting for a gastric band operation at York Hospital for years. Along with other local patients, he was kicked off the waiting list earlier this year because North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) suspended the service while it conducted a review.

Obesity surgery is now available on the NHS again in this area, but GPs must refer their patients to the PCT for prior approval first.

Dr David Fair, from Jorvik Medical Practice, said: "I'd like to know how many patients exist in this area with a BMI of over 50 - because that's massively overweight. The fact is it's still severely restricted. For the vast majority of people, they're still going to be excluded from having the surgery."

A PCT spokesman said: "All patients with a BMI over 50 are considered for surgery, with those registering a BMI under 50 considered for surgery on a case-by-case basis depending on their individual circumstances.

"We recognise that, in line with many other areas across the country, there is a need for us to develop better community-based services for obese patients who need support to lose weight, which is why we are currently putting together a service development plan to see how we can best meet their needs.

"We are looking at the support services we can put in place for those patients who could be treated without the need for surgery. Surgery for obesity is not without risk and, in many cases, it may be preferable for patients to access the help they need in other ways."

Editor's choice