Bariatric Center Georgetown Community Hospital
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Why Georgetown
Why are we so proud of our Weight Loss Surgery Program?
Georgetown Bariatrics (The Bariatric Center at Georgetown Community Hospital) has been performing weight loss surgery since 1999. In fact, over 5,000 patients have undergone weight loss surgery procedures at our facility! This means that we have learned by experience what to provide our patients to insure the best outcomes.
We offer:
• A Center of Excellence facility that has spent millions of dollars providing for the special needs of our bariatric population. To read more about Center of Excellence criteria, click here.
• A Center of Excellence and fellowship-trained surgeon, Dr. Tom Sonnanstine, who has performed over 2,000 weight loss surgeries since beginning his surgical career 7 years ago, and has made a commitment to seeing his patients for their follow-up appointments. Dr. Sonnanstine is also our program’s Medical Director, and actively participates in developing the program’s policies, procedures and protocols. To learn more about Dr. Sonnanstine, click here.
• Dr. Jason Rasmussen (arriving in August, 2010), a second, fellowship-trained surgeon, who will also perform surgery at Georgetown Community Hospital. To learn more about Dr. Rasmussen, click here.
• A pre-operative Bariatric Preparation Program that prepares our patients for surgery physically, mentally, and emotionally. This program includes both pre- and post-operative psychological evaluation and education, and pre- and post-operative dietary evaluation and education, including support groups and special group therapy. This is all at NO COST to our patients! To learn more, click here.
• A team of pre- and post-op care-givers who have had years of experience in the field of Bariatrics, including five weight loss surgery patients. Click here to read about our Center of Excellence Staff!
• A private wing for our bariatric patients, staffed with nurses and nursing assistants who’ve had additional training in the needs of bariatric patients. Click here to read more about the facility and nursing staff members.
• A highly experienced O.R. team that has assisted with weight loss surgeries since 1999. To date, they’ve helped complete over 5,000 surgeries.
• A smaller community hospital atmosphere, where you won’t need to worry about parking and getting lost on the hospital’s campus!
• Georgetown Community Hospital built a high-tech surgical suite for Dr. Sonnanstine, which allows him the ability to perform “tele-surgery.” He can broadcast surgical procedures (with patient permission) to other facilities and physicians who want to learn his techniques. This OR suite has been outfitted with the most up-to-date, advanced technology and equipment.
• Dr. Sonnanstine has a long-standing relationship with Ethicon Endo-Surgery, the maker of the REALIZE Band and much of the instrumentation used in weight loss surgery. Through this affiliation, Dr. Sonnanstine travels all over the country and even to some foreign countries, to teach other surgeons his techniques. He’s been to 20 states and eight foreign countries teaching other surgeons how to perform Gastric Bypasses, Gastric Sleeves and Gastric Adjustable Banding procedures.
• Georgetown is a small picturesque community known for antiquing and the Japanese Garden, Yuko-En on the Elkhorn, yet offers hotels within four miles of our hospital and multiple opportunities for shopping, restaurants, family outings etc. For example, we are four miles away from the Kentucky Horse Park, 12 miles from downtown Lexington, and an hour away from Louisville and Cincinnati.