Submitted by admin on Sat, 2005-10-08 00:00. ::
Weight-loss surgeries are becoming common at many Las Vegas Valley hospitals because of their community benefits and profit potential, but the treatments are different.
To highlight the differences in their programs and take them to the next level, North Vista Hospital, owned by IASIS Healthcare LLC, and Desert Springs Hospital, owned by Universal Health Services Inc., are hoping to become recognized Centers of Excellence by the American Society of Bariatric Surgery.
North Vista has completed its application and is awaiting results of a site visit, while Desert Springs is finalizing its application and plans to have a site visit soon.
Other Las Vegas Valley hospitals are jumping on the bariatrics bandwagon, which could have a significant effect on valley residents who opt to have the surgery that can cost about $20,000.
Between 20 percent and 24 percent of Nevadans were overweight or obese in 2004, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obese is a designation given to people who have an abnormally high proportion of body fat based on national height and weight standards.
North Vista Hospital established its bariatric surgery program three years ago and has treated 240 patients since January, while Desert Springs Hospital launched its program in November and has treated 210 bariatric patients so far.
Desert Springs started its program to enhance its cardiac and diabetes programs, which are conditions commonly associated with obesity, Kaufman said.
It also was developed to keep patients from leaving Las Vegas for bariatric surgery in California and Arizona, which could be a patient struggle to get to and from the surgery and follow-up care, Kaufman said.
Becoming a Center of Excellence could substantially aid North Vista and Desert Springs because insurers are beginning to evaluate bariatric programs' quality. The evaluations are not likely to affect coverage or provider networks next year.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans such as Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nevada and Colorado have requested information such as how many bariatric surgeries are performed annually, the outcomes and the complications, which are measurements used to become a Center of Excellence.
JoAnna Fry, senior product manager of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nevada and Colorado's Center of Excellence program, said the information requests are part of a national initiative to highlight programs that would provide the best outcomes.
It would be up to employers to provide incentives to employees to seek care at Centers of Excellence or to discourage them from going to other hospitals, Fry said.
Desert Springs and North Vista say their focus is on the quality of care they provide and without that level of care and surgeon expertise, the profits wouldn't be there.
"Yes it is profitable, but it's also a risky surgery," North Vista Chief Executive Tony Marinello said. "Without high quality outcomes the profitability won't be there because of morbidity factors."
He said many hospitals want to provide bariatric services because it's a good product line, but they need to consider more than the profit potential.
"You've got to get into it for the right reasons - not just profitability," Marinello said. "Quality of care, outcomes and profitability are tied together."
St. Rose Dominican Hospitals -- Rose de Lima Campus launched a bariatrics program in January, but it focuses on mini gastric bypass surgeries, which reconfigures the stomach and reduces the amount of food that is absorbed and how it is absorbed. It is supposed to require shorter surgical and recovery times, but there is less research on the procedure and not all insurers cover it.
"Rose de Lima launched the product line to meet the need of an underserved segment of the community," Mike Tymczyn, vice president of St. Rose corporate communications said in a statement. "The mini gastric bypass procedure, the only procedure performed at Rose de Lima, is not widely available at other area hospitals."
"His extensive experience performing these surgeries, along with his track record of quality outcomes and status as an educator on the procedure, was an impressive addition to our medical staff," Tymczyn said in a statement.
Desert Springs and North Vista both perform a procedure called laparoscopic gastric bypass or, roux-en-y surgery, which reduces the size of the stomach by separating the small stomach from the large stomach and reattaching it to the small intestine, said Robyn Tovar, North Vista bariatrics director and a registered nurse.
The other procedure performed in those hospitals is gastric banding, which involves placing a silicone band around the top of the stomach to restrict food intake and reduce hunger.
Health insurers often cover bariatric surgery once patients meet certain medical criteria, but the amount that is covered and the requirements vary.
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