Ottawa Hospital Weight Management Clinic?
Hi, i'm new to the boards and to the whole concept of getting help to deal with being obese. My doctor gave me a referral to the weight management clinic run through the Ottawa Hospital with Dr. Dent as a first step - I think he thinks that jumping right to the conclusion that I should have surgery is a little drastic for me until I try this program. I don't even know what my BMI is, but I can say that i'm 5'6", 278lbs with hypothyroid disease and edema in my legs. Essentially I am looking to hear about anyone else's experiences with the clinic. I'm pretty nervous about it, and I am still waiting for the phone call to tell me to come in and discuss it and I would like to be armed with info! If anyone can tell me about the program structure, the cost, what sort of things go on at meetings, the support, how successful it was, etc. - I would appreciate any details! I hope to hear back from some of you! :)
Well you are going to get mixed reviews..some people hate Dr. Dent..others are on the fence.
My personal experience was ok....I went there years ago and saw a different Dr...when I went last summer to see Dr. Dent he told me about optifast..i told him i wasn't intersted in all that stuff...he asked me what i wanted and i told him surgery..he said..ok surgery it is...he wrote a letter of recomendation to my family dr...i had the paper work for out of country surgery ready for him to sign..(i filled it out)...he signed it and faxed it to ohip..i had an approval within a few days..
are you looking to have weight loss surgery or a diet?
Robin
My personal experience was ok....I went there years ago and saw a different Dr...when I went last summer to see Dr. Dent he told me about optifast..i told him i wasn't intersted in all that stuff...he asked me what i wanted and i told him surgery..he said..ok surgery it is...he wrote a letter of recomendation to my family dr...i had the paper work for out of country surgery ready for him to sign..(i filled it out)...he signed it and faxed it to ohip..i had an approval within a few days..
are you looking to have weight loss surgery or a diet?
Robin
I did the Dent program in the beginning of 2007. I'm not going to say I hate Dent or anything BUT I wouldn't waste a penny on his Optifast program, which costs almost $3k btw. Sure it works for some but the majority gain it all back then some!
I only lost 20lbs and found the stuff tasted horrible! I gained it all back and then some before asking about surgery.
Another word of advice, Dr Dent only promotes 1 type of surgery! Before you get him to agree to fill out any forms for you, I strongly suggest you do your research on this site as there are a FEW different surgery types out there but he won't tell you about anything other than the RNY.
I'm sure you'll get some great help from people who have had the other surgery types on here.
Good luck to you!
I only lost 20lbs and found the stuff tasted horrible! I gained it all back and then some before asking about surgery.
Another word of advice, Dr Dent only promotes 1 type of surgery! Before you get him to agree to fill out any forms for you, I strongly suggest you do your research on this site as there are a FEW different surgery types out there but he won't tell you about anything other than the RNY.
I'm sure you'll get some great help from people who have had the other surgery types on here.
Good luck to you!
I went through the core program at the weight management clinic about 5 years ago. It's the optifast program which is a liquid diet. I think it lasts about 3 months. You also attend lifestlye management classes once a week for about 6 months. I started the program at about 260 pounds and only lost about 55 pounds. Needless to say I was still quite obese after dropping nearly 3 thousand dollars.
The weekly classes are nutritionists, personal trainers and psychologists. I didn't find it especially enlighting.
It was the last and most extreme diet I did before my weight loss surgery. Between the time I fnished the program and the time I had my surgery I gained 100 pounds. I also ended up with a nasty case of gallstones half way through the program and spent countless nights in the hospital.
If you're looking at a diet, I wouldn't recommend it. Being on a liquid diet for 3 months does NOT teach you how to eat properly, and as much as they say that the classes DO teach those things, you're not actually putting it into practice as you learn.....and trust me, after 3 months of chocolate shakes, the last thing you're thinking about when you're done is healthy food.
Cheers
Jen
The weekly classes are nutritionists, personal trainers and psychologists. I didn't find it especially enlighting.
It was the last and most extreme diet I did before my weight loss surgery. Between the time I fnished the program and the time I had my surgery I gained 100 pounds. I also ended up with a nasty case of gallstones half way through the program and spent countless nights in the hospital.
If you're looking at a diet, I wouldn't recommend it. Being on a liquid diet for 3 months does NOT teach you how to eat properly, and as much as they say that the classes DO teach those things, you're not actually putting it into practice as you learn.....and trust me, after 3 months of chocolate shakes, the last thing you're thinking about when you're done is healthy food.
Cheers
Jen
Hi I've done both the optifast program and had roux-n-Y surgery. I agree with the others that posted that the optifast tasted horrible but I stuck it out untill I had lost about 40 pounds and I held that weight for about 5 or 6 years till I quit smoking and gained it all back but some. I hesitated for about 6 years before I decided to go the surgery route. I now regret that I waited that long. I had my surgery on Dec12/08 and have now lost 66 pounds. The time I wasted trying to be strong and accomplish the whole thing on my own makes me sad now. About two years ago I litteraly thought I would be in a nursing home at 50. (which is now my age) Myt COPD has done a 85% turn-around and I'm doing things around the house that I haven't been able to do for 15 years. The key is to research, and do more research, untill your'e comfortable with your decision. No one else can do that for you. P.S. I've only had wonderful experiences with the Ottawa Weight Management Group and Dr. Dent. Good Luck!!!!
Hi and welcome - I hope you find lots of info and help.
Others have said well that you will get mixed reviews about the Clinic. My experience was very good and I remain a patient of the team now because I am part of their long-term research. I started in Fall 2004 and did the core program too. I lost 108 pounds in the 12-week program and felt better than at any point since I was a teenager. However like others I regained; probably took me about 18 mos to regain about 75% of that lost weight sadly. I think if I'd followed up with them more closely after the program thru regular visits I might have remained more motivated and kept more off - who knows.
I have seen three of the docs in the clinic, and recently had most of my appontments with Dr. Wicklum. She's been great with me. Dr. Dent has always been superb with me although you will hear others don't like him. I guess it's black or white with him, no gray. He did ask me about surgery back in 2004 and I was just not ready then - in fact I shut down the conversation and didn't hear important information that might have swayed my decision toward surgery earlier - I had too many fears. But it is what it is, and I was not ready. When I went back to the clinic last July they asked me again if I would consider surgery and I was ready to hear it. I had my surgery last month. Now I'm down more than 40 pounds post-op and praying to the gods and goddesses that this is weight I'll never see again!
In the intervening months they have been supportive, answered questions, sent in the OHIP out-of-country surgery forms and I was approved in like 3 days, and have arranged for all the blood work (which I have done right there at the Civic). You'll see other folks here ******g around for months with MDs who can't or won't fill out the forms. IF you choose RNY at some point I think you can rely on the forms being filled out quickly and properly at the Clinic. Others here have said that Dr. Dent and team won't support DS but they discussed the option with me. IF that happens to you then you may indeed need to find a different MD to fill out those forms (and sounds like your own doc is aware of WLS option and might help, eh?) Anyway I have had very good support from them this year and it continues. I had my last app't with them last week and again it's just a good place for me to get advice, get weighed properly (even though I have a heavy-duty digital at home), they go over all the blood work and meds, etc. etc.
You pay for the Optifast program part of course (i.e. the shakes) if you choose to do that. I wish I could recall it all but you'll be out about $2700 as I recall, so it's not cheap. They will tell you all that and of course you pay nothing up front for the consult.
My advice would be to go and have the initial assessment. You'll fill out lots of forms about weight history, etc. But you'll get to talk to them and hear some perspectives on your situation. You can then sit back and think about options, see how you feel about your own experience there, and on you go. You can always come back and talk with others here about it too.
Hope your journey is not too rocky!
Mike
Others have said well that you will get mixed reviews about the Clinic. My experience was very good and I remain a patient of the team now because I am part of their long-term research. I started in Fall 2004 and did the core program too. I lost 108 pounds in the 12-week program and felt better than at any point since I was a teenager. However like others I regained; probably took me about 18 mos to regain about 75% of that lost weight sadly. I think if I'd followed up with them more closely after the program thru regular visits I might have remained more motivated and kept more off - who knows.
I have seen three of the docs in the clinic, and recently had most of my appontments with Dr. Wicklum. She's been great with me. Dr. Dent has always been superb with me although you will hear others don't like him. I guess it's black or white with him, no gray. He did ask me about surgery back in 2004 and I was just not ready then - in fact I shut down the conversation and didn't hear important information that might have swayed my decision toward surgery earlier - I had too many fears. But it is what it is, and I was not ready. When I went back to the clinic last July they asked me again if I would consider surgery and I was ready to hear it. I had my surgery last month. Now I'm down more than 40 pounds post-op and praying to the gods and goddesses that this is weight I'll never see again!
In the intervening months they have been supportive, answered questions, sent in the OHIP out-of-country surgery forms and I was approved in like 3 days, and have arranged for all the blood work (which I have done right there at the Civic). You'll see other folks here ******g around for months with MDs who can't or won't fill out the forms. IF you choose RNY at some point I think you can rely on the forms being filled out quickly and properly at the Clinic. Others here have said that Dr. Dent and team won't support DS but they discussed the option with me. IF that happens to you then you may indeed need to find a different MD to fill out those forms (and sounds like your own doc is aware of WLS option and might help, eh?) Anyway I have had very good support from them this year and it continues. I had my last app't with them last week and again it's just a good place for me to get advice, get weighed properly (even though I have a heavy-duty digital at home), they go over all the blood work and meds, etc. etc.
You pay for the Optifast program part of course (i.e. the shakes) if you choose to do that. I wish I could recall it all but you'll be out about $2700 as I recall, so it's not cheap. They will tell you all that and of course you pay nothing up front for the consult.
My advice would be to go and have the initial assessment. You'll fill out lots of forms about weight history, etc. But you'll get to talk to them and hear some perspectives on your situation. You can then sit back and think about options, see how you feel about your own experience there, and on you go. You can always come back and talk with others here about it too.
Hope your journey is not too rocky!
Mike
For last year's words belong to last year's language.
And next year's words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
T.S. Eliot
And next year's words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
T.S. Eliot
I saw Dr. Dent, I found him arrogant and extremely condescending (spelling??). He told me that his program wouldn't work for me so there was no reason to bother (that was the one time I actually aprreciated what he said).
There was no way I could see myself paying that much money to do a liquid diet. If I could live off of liquid I would have done so a long time ago.
The bottom line is- having his recomendation only helps your case out by miles. IF he thinks you should do it OHIP will think better of your case.
If you can get past his lack of bedside manner and complete disregard for the emotional state of his patients, you will do fine. Don't take what he says personally. The unfortunate thing - despite his methods and arrogance, he is good at what he does and knows what he is talking about!!
Good luck!
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