Referral criteria

We accept referrals if patients meet the NICE (National Institute of Clinical Excellent) 2006 guidelines and NHS England criteria for funding bariatric surgery.

The assessment aims to establish whether bariatric surgery is suitable for the person. Bariatric surgery is a treatment option for people with obesity if all of the following criteria are fulfilled:
  • All appropriate non-surgical measures have been tried but the person has not had or maintained adequate, clinically beneficial weight loss.
  • The person has been receiving or will receive intensive management in a tier 3 service.
  • The person is generally fit for anaesthesia and surgery.
  • The person commits to the need for long-term follow-up.
We require a referral letter from a medical practitioner, which should be addressed to a Consultant, before an appointment can be made. Please ensure that the patient’s weight, height and BMI are stated clearly in the letter. Past medical and dieting history should also be included. Failure to include these details will result in a rejection of the referral
In addition to the above criteria from the NICE guidelines, you must be willing to see the various specialist recommended by our team and follow our instructions.  Otherwise, we cannot ensure the safety of your procedure and desired outcomes. You must belong to one of the following categories: 
  • You have a BMI 35 - 39.9 kg/m2 with co-morbidities e.g. type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis, metabolic syndrome etc.
  • You have a BMI 40 – 50 kg/m2  - no co-morbidity required.
    You would have tried non-surgical measures for at least six months and failed to achieve or maintain adequate clinically beneficial weight loss. However, if you have a BMI of > 50 kg/m2, these conditions are waved.
     
    All patients must demonstrate evidence of engaging with dieticians and / or diet programs and undertaken exercise programs unless there are clinical reasons why these are not applicable.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

The Body Mass Index is a tool that can be used to tell how healthy a person's weight is.
To work out your BMI, you need to take your weight in kilograms (kg) and divide it by your height in metres (m). Then divide the result by your height in metres (m) again.

For example, if you weigh 70kg, and you're 1.75m tall, your BMI would be 22.9 (70/1.75 = 40 and 40/1.75 = 22.9).

You can also click here to calculate your BMI.
Last updated12 Feb 2022
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