After you've had any surgery or procedure, it's extremely important to comply with your post-op instructions. Your post-op care is crucial and can determine how long the healing process can take.
Dr. Basil Yurcisin discusses why complying with post-op care is essential and why you should follow instructions carefully.
The Importance of Post-op Compliance
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Learn more about Basil Yurcisin, MD
Basil Yurcisin, MD
Dr. Basil Yurcisin is a seasoned bariatric and general surgeon, trained at one of the world’s top fellowship programs in bariatrics and minimally invasive surgery- Duke University Medical Center in NC. GSBWC looked for just the right combination of superior surgeon, highly trained (with thousands of surgeries performed before he joined us) and an unwavering, authentic passion and commitment to patients.Learn more about Basil Yurcisin, MD
Transcription:
Bill Klaproth (Host): After bariatric surgery, post-op compliance is critical to your success. So what does a post-op plan look like? Here to tell us more is Dr. Basil Yurcisin, a bariatric and general surgeon and a partner at Garden State Bariatrics and Wellness Center. Dr. Yurcisin, thank you for your time. So what is post-op compliance?
Dr. Basil Yurcisin, MD (Guest): Well I guess the short answer is, is listening to the plan the doctor has set forward for you so that you can be successful in your post-operative time after the surgery.
Bill: So why is this so critical in someone's weight loss plan?
Dr. Yurcisin: Well one of the most common reasons for not losing as much weight as one would like, or regaining weight after a bariatric surgery, is non-compliance with the diet and the exercise regimen that has been assigned to the patient.
Bill: So Dr. Yurcisin, long-term compliance then is critical in determining the outcome of a bariatric procedure.
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah. What I like to say to the patients is it's not go have surgery and then go buy skinny jeans. It's not a linear progression like that. It's go have surgery then start the really hard work which is changing the habits that got you there in the first place to the point where you needed to consider surgery.
Bill: So a post-op plan includes diet, exercise, other lifestyle changes. So post-op compliance then is really key after surgery.
Dr. Yurcisin: Absolutely. You can't- the other thing I like to tell my patients is that essentially it's like getting married, you know? When you first get married, the relationship is a lot of tickle fights, and everybody is having a good time, but then there's pet peeves that come up, and there's living with the other person, and if you don't put the time and effort into making sure that the relationship is based on something sound then you may not have a good outcome in the long run. It's the same thing with surgery. You have to- while it's easy to lose weight in the very beginning, you still have to follow the rules rather than becoming complacent because you're losing weight even though you're not following the rules, because those not following the rule items can definitely catch up with you over time.
Bill: What a great analogy. And what is the post-op compliance schedule at Garden State Bariatrics and Wellness Center? What can someone expect?
Dr. Yurcisin: Well we definitely keep up with our patients after surgery. So not only the immediate post-operative period where we're making sure that the incisions are healing, and that you're doing okay from the surgery standpoint, but also to see how you're doing from the standpoint of weight loss, and moving forward with your exercises, and your diets, and just kind of being onward successful. So we see each other one week after surgery, two months after surgery, four months after surgery, seven months after surgery, twelve months after surgery, eighteen months, two years, and then yearly thereafter because it truly is a lifelong change that we're asking from those people.
Bill: So it really is a long-term relationship you have with your patients. Your marriage analogy is very fitting.
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah, I like to think it is. We can get into the whole conversation of marriage in today's society, but yeah.
Bill: So do people generally have trouble with post-op compliance? Or because they're so motivated to lose weight, they're in effect really good students and do everything that is asked of them?
Dr. Yurcisin: Oftentimes people start kind of hot and ready to go, you know? And then some of the compliance can start to wane over time, and that's one of the things we're trying to guard against, that complacency or that kind of falling into old habits from happening. So that's why we have the patients come often in the beginning to follow up, and to check in, and if they start to get off track a little bit, we can try to steer them back. There's different medications we can sometimes add to the regimen to try to help them lose weight, there's resources in the sense of the type of exercise offerings and things that they can get their hands on through some of our relationships in the community. There's definitely therapy, and there's ongoing nutritional counseling that can be done if necessary for any patient who may be slipping or kind of deviating from the line.
Bill: So you obviously check their weight when they come in. What if someone is doing all that is asked of them, but their weight is going up?
Dr. Yurcisin: Well we can do different things where we will actually assess the person's metabolic rate by using a special machine we have here in our office to get an idea of how their body burns calories. We have relationships with metabolic medicine doctors that can actually- from the medicine side of weight loss, not just the surgery side, but the medicine side of weight loss they can actually assess the patient's vitamins and minerals and baseline metabolism in order to try to make sure that that's not the reason why they may not be doing as well with their weight loss efforts. And sometimes we even go as far as talking about revisional or additional surgery to maybe convert the current operation they have into maybe a more aggressive operation for more weight loss.
Bill: So mentally, what if someone is struggling with, as you say, the hard work that comes after surgery? Do you give pep talks? Do you assume some sort of a coach's role?
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah, I mean I guess we're a bit of a coach or a bit of a, "Hey sit down and let me spin you a tale" kind of a storyteller sometimes, cautionary tales. And it's just everybody is a little bit different on what they need in order to be motivated to kind of follow the rules. Sometimes when a patient's losing weight despite their bad habits, they kind of - like I said a moment ago - they become complacent, but then when they gain one pound then they come into the office very upset and ready to be changed. So sometimes they get scared in that way, and sometimes they heed our warnings before they get to that point. So everybody is a little bit different on how they kind of take to the warnings that they're given.
Bill: So Dr. Yurcisin, is there anything else someone should know about post-op compliance?
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah absolutely, and it's the same message that I say over and over again. It's not just have surgery and go buy skinny jeans. It's have the surgery, recovery from the surgery, and then the real work starts at that point where you have to actually apply yourself and change the very habits that got you kind of in trouble in the first place.
Bill: Well Dr. Yurcisin, thank you for your time, as always. We appreciate it. For more information about Garden State Bariatrics and Wellness Center, please visit www.GSBWC.com. That's www.GSBWC.com. This is Winning Through Losing, a weight loss surgery podcast with Garden State Bariatrics. I'm Bill Klaproth, thanks for listening.
Bill Klaproth (Host): After bariatric surgery, post-op compliance is critical to your success. So what does a post-op plan look like? Here to tell us more is Dr. Basil Yurcisin, a bariatric and general surgeon and a partner at Garden State Bariatrics and Wellness Center. Dr. Yurcisin, thank you for your time. So what is post-op compliance?
Dr. Basil Yurcisin, MD (Guest): Well I guess the short answer is, is listening to the plan the doctor has set forward for you so that you can be successful in your post-operative time after the surgery.
Bill: So why is this so critical in someone's weight loss plan?
Dr. Yurcisin: Well one of the most common reasons for not losing as much weight as one would like, or regaining weight after a bariatric surgery, is non-compliance with the diet and the exercise regimen that has been assigned to the patient.
Bill: So Dr. Yurcisin, long-term compliance then is critical in determining the outcome of a bariatric procedure.
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah. What I like to say to the patients is it's not go have surgery and then go buy skinny jeans. It's not a linear progression like that. It's go have surgery then start the really hard work which is changing the habits that got you there in the first place to the point where you needed to consider surgery.
Bill: So a post-op plan includes diet, exercise, other lifestyle changes. So post-op compliance then is really key after surgery.
Dr. Yurcisin: Absolutely. You can't- the other thing I like to tell my patients is that essentially it's like getting married, you know? When you first get married, the relationship is a lot of tickle fights, and everybody is having a good time, but then there's pet peeves that come up, and there's living with the other person, and if you don't put the time and effort into making sure that the relationship is based on something sound then you may not have a good outcome in the long run. It's the same thing with surgery. You have to- while it's easy to lose weight in the very beginning, you still have to follow the rules rather than becoming complacent because you're losing weight even though you're not following the rules, because those not following the rule items can definitely catch up with you over time.
Bill: What a great analogy. And what is the post-op compliance schedule at Garden State Bariatrics and Wellness Center? What can someone expect?
Dr. Yurcisin: Well we definitely keep up with our patients after surgery. So not only the immediate post-operative period where we're making sure that the incisions are healing, and that you're doing okay from the surgery standpoint, but also to see how you're doing from the standpoint of weight loss, and moving forward with your exercises, and your diets, and just kind of being onward successful. So we see each other one week after surgery, two months after surgery, four months after surgery, seven months after surgery, twelve months after surgery, eighteen months, two years, and then yearly thereafter because it truly is a lifelong change that we're asking from those people.
Bill: So it really is a long-term relationship you have with your patients. Your marriage analogy is very fitting.
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah, I like to think it is. We can get into the whole conversation of marriage in today's society, but yeah.
Bill: So do people generally have trouble with post-op compliance? Or because they're so motivated to lose weight, they're in effect really good students and do everything that is asked of them?
Dr. Yurcisin: Oftentimes people start kind of hot and ready to go, you know? And then some of the compliance can start to wane over time, and that's one of the things we're trying to guard against, that complacency or that kind of falling into old habits from happening. So that's why we have the patients come often in the beginning to follow up, and to check in, and if they start to get off track a little bit, we can try to steer them back. There's different medications we can sometimes add to the regimen to try to help them lose weight, there's resources in the sense of the type of exercise offerings and things that they can get their hands on through some of our relationships in the community. There's definitely therapy, and there's ongoing nutritional counseling that can be done if necessary for any patient who may be slipping or kind of deviating from the line.
Bill: So you obviously check their weight when they come in. What if someone is doing all that is asked of them, but their weight is going up?
Dr. Yurcisin: Well we can do different things where we will actually assess the person's metabolic rate by using a special machine we have here in our office to get an idea of how their body burns calories. We have relationships with metabolic medicine doctors that can actually- from the medicine side of weight loss, not just the surgery side, but the medicine side of weight loss they can actually assess the patient's vitamins and minerals and baseline metabolism in order to try to make sure that that's not the reason why they may not be doing as well with their weight loss efforts. And sometimes we even go as far as talking about revisional or additional surgery to maybe convert the current operation they have into maybe a more aggressive operation for more weight loss.
Bill: So mentally, what if someone is struggling with, as you say, the hard work that comes after surgery? Do you give pep talks? Do you assume some sort of a coach's role?
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah, I mean I guess we're a bit of a coach or a bit of a, "Hey sit down and let me spin you a tale" kind of a storyteller sometimes, cautionary tales. And it's just everybody is a little bit different on what they need in order to be motivated to kind of follow the rules. Sometimes when a patient's losing weight despite their bad habits, they kind of - like I said a moment ago - they become complacent, but then when they gain one pound then they come into the office very upset and ready to be changed. So sometimes they get scared in that way, and sometimes they heed our warnings before they get to that point. So everybody is a little bit different on how they kind of take to the warnings that they're given.
Bill: So Dr. Yurcisin, is there anything else someone should know about post-op compliance?
Dr. Yurcisin: Yeah absolutely, and it's the same message that I say over and over again. It's not just have surgery and go buy skinny jeans. It's have the surgery, recovery from the surgery, and then the real work starts at that point where you have to actually apply yourself and change the very habits that got you kind of in trouble in the first place.
Bill: Well Dr. Yurcisin, thank you for your time, as always. We appreciate it. For more information about Garden State Bariatrics and Wellness Center, please visit www.GSBWC.com. That's www.GSBWC.com. This is Winning Through Losing, a weight loss surgery podcast with Garden State Bariatrics. I'm Bill Klaproth, thanks for listening.