Important Information for Overweight Patients Referred for Routine Surgery
Surgery is safer and more effective for people with a healthy weight and for non-smokers:
There are times when we need to go into hospital for a routine procedure or operation to resolve a medical problem. For health reasons, very overweight patients will be asked to lose weight before they can be listed for surgery. This will affect you if:
You have a body mass index of more than 40.0 or
you have a body mass index between 30.0 and 40.0 and have a condition such as diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
We will require patients who smoke to get advice from a specialist who can talk you through all the help that is available to support you to quit smoking. Please see our page on smoking cessation for further information.
If you are overweight and have been referred to a consultant, you should take the opportunity to start losing weight. This will help avoid delays if your consultant says that you need surgery. It also means that your general health will benefit from being at a healthy weight. Please see our page on healthy weight for more information.
Your doctor may advise you to lose weight or attend a smoking cessation clinic before referring you to the hospital.
These measures apply to people who need routine surgery only and not to emergencies. The CCG has asked the GP's in Hertfordshire to follow this guidance.
