North Memorial Bariatric Surgical Center Receives National Accreditation
(Robbinsdale, MN – March 4, 2016) – North Memorial Health Care is proud to announce that its bariatric surgical center at North Memorial Medical Center has been named as a fully accredited Low Acuity 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). This national accreditation means that North Memorial’s program meets the highest standards for patient safety and quality of care.
To earn the MBSAQIP designation, North Memorial met essential criteria for staffing, training and facility infrastructure and protocols for care, ensuring its ability to support patients with severe obesity. North Memorial 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. The standards are specified in the MBSAQIP Resources for Optimal Care of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Patient 2014, published by the ACS and ASMBS.
“North Memorial’s integrated Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery program provides comprehensive care, management and planning for surgical weight loss for qualified patients. Bariatric surgical procedures combined with healthy food choices and daily exercise have been shown to reduce obesity, improve mortality and decrease the health risks from chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes,” said Jonathan C. Gipson, MD, FACS, North Memorial Health Care Director of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. “Our commitment to quality care begins with highly trained care teams and surgeons. Each patient’s integrated care team is individually tailored to meet unique needs but often includes, in addition to the surgeon, a nutritionist, pharmacist, psychologist and other medical specialists as needed.”
To receive MBSAQIP Accreditation, North Memorial underwent an extensive site visit by an experienced bariatric surgeon, who reviewed 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. 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. North Memorial also offers preoperative and postoperative care designed specifically for severely obese patients.
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 North Memorial Health Care
North Memorial Health Care provides access to high-quality, low-cost care with an extensive network that spans the Twin Cities, including 16 primary care clinics offering same-day and walk-in appointments, 2 urgent care clinics, 2 Urgency Centers staffed by emergency room doctors and a broad range of expert specialty care providers. North Memorial’s two hospitals are nationally recognized for providing excellent patient care; North Memorial Medical Center, a Level I trauma center; and Maple Grove Hospital, a Truven Health Analytics’ Top 100 Hospital. North Memorial’s 5,000 employees and 900 physicians deliver patient centered care for all aspects of life from maternity to senior care by providing primary and specialty care for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of complex medical conditions. Learn more at www.northmemorial.com
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.