Bariatric Evaluations
If you or a family member have been referred for psychological testing or pre-surgical psychological clearance, you probably have some questions about what to expect. The following information is related to psychological assessments for bariatric surgery.
At Dyer Psychology, we want to help you become fully educated about the impact of surgery.
Bariatric surgery for weight loss brings with it drastic lifestyle changes. To ensure your physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing, during, and after the procedure, your surgeon and insurance provider will likely require a pre-surgical psychological evaluation.
To assess your cognitive and emotional readiness, the psychologist seeks to examine whether you know everything about weight-loss surgical procedures, alongside the associated risks and challenges. In other words, we want to make sure you know what you are agreeing to.
A psychological assessment can include numerous components such as norm-referenced psychological tests, informal tests, surveys, interview information, school or medical records, medical evaluation, and observational data. A psychologist determines what information to use based on the specific questions being asked.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Should I expect?
The first step is to complete forms about your weight, eating, drinking, substance use, and emotional state. Next, you will meet with a psychologist for one hour to discuss:
•Your eating habits
& mental state
•Your understanding of the weight loss surgery procedure, any risks involved, and the necessary long-term behavioral changes that you will have to make so that you are prepared for success
•Followed by completion of appropriate psychological tests
What is the point?
The main goal of this evaluation is to understand why you want bariatric surgery, explore how you are preparing for the lifestyle changes that come with this procedure, and ensure you have a healthy support system, recovery plan, and stable living situation.
How long will it take?
On average, the evaluation will take 60 minutes to complete.
What happens after the pre-bariatric surgery evaluation?
After the evaluation we will prepare a report and send it directly to your surgeon. Our policy is to guarantee that your surgeon will have the report within 7 days of your evaluation date. We also offer: •Outpatient therapy for pre-operative patients to help prepare them for the post-operative behavioral and emotional changes. •Post-operative therapy to assist with adherence to diet, physical activity, lifestyle changes, or emotional adjustment.
Why should I have a psychological evaluation prior to bariatric surgery?
•Your insurance and/or surgeon requires it
•To learn more about the psychological factors related to eating habits and barriers that prevent you from staying on track
•To come up with the best plan to help get you on your way for post-surgical success
Will I pass the evaluation?
The evaluation is your chance to ask questions and express concerns. We will do our best to address them. Remember, the evaluation is not a pass or fail test. Having surgery is serious, we want to make sure that you have done your homework, are prepared for surgery, and understand what to expect. Many individuals suffer from depression, anxiety, binge eating, and other problems. On average, these are typically not reasons to delay or deny surgery. If there is anything that concerns us, we will share it with you during the visit. We will work with you to develop a plan to better prepare to have surgery. Ultimately, your surgeon will be provided with the results of the evaluation and decide as to whether she or he will proceed with surgery.
How much does the evaluation cost, will insurance cover it?
Please contact us to inquire about your insurance plan. We can bill your insurance company as an out-of-network provider. We also have reasonable fees for self-pay patients.