WELCOME
The goal of the GET TO SURGERY program is to make sure that indeed we optimize your health in preparation for your joint replacement surgery. Ultimately we treat you where you are. We know that many of you have been told in the past to “just lose weight and then we will fix your knee or hip” or whatever. We are not going to do that here. In this program we will provide you with information around the SCIENCE of weight gain and weight regulation and evidence based treatments to help with weight loss. We will work with you to help you better understand why certain treatments do and don’t work and find a clinical pathway best for you.
WHAT TO EXPECT
THE APPROACH:
We will be taking a medical approach to manage your obesity. This means we will be using medications and in some cases even recommending bariatric surgery. You are the ultimate decision maker here. You do not HAVE to take any treatment your are not comfortable with. Our goal is to make sure you make an INFORMED decision.
This website is your information library and your guide to your clinical pathway. Please use it often and refer to it frequently. We know that there is so much DISINFORMATION out there about obesity and weight regulation. We want you to get the science so that you no longer have to wander in the wilderness frustrated and alone trying to manage this disease.
THE VISITS
All clinical visit will be virtual via ZOOM. You will meet separately with one of our team doctors and one our team nurses on a regular basis (usually every 2-4 weeks). The details and sequence of these visits are outlines in our clinical pathway below to give you a better overview of what to expect in a step by step fashion.
Each visit will be similar to any doctor’s visit but the goal will be to focus on managing your obesity. In other words we will frame the visits like any doctor’s visit but if you are having other clinical problems we ask that you discuss those with your family doctor. Out goal is weight loss in preparation for joint surgery.
THE INITIAL VISIT:
You will have two initial visits; one with our nurse and one with our doctor. You will be seeing the same nurse and doctor at each subsequent visit. The goal of this visit is to get to know you better- medically and personally. We want to know about your medical history, your obesity history and a bit about you and your overall health goals. Health is personal.
For example we will discuss:
how the current treatment is working?
are there any side effects or concerns?
what questions do you have about your current treatment?
What changes might you want help with from a nutritional perspective?
We have created a library of resources for you to use including information on the medical, nutritional and behavioural aspects of health and weight regulation. We will help you work through this wealth of information.
Our Team
Tanner Chahley, MD, FRCPC, Diplomate ABOM
Dr. Tanner Chahley
Dr. Chahley is a General Internist who completed medical school at the University of British Columbia before traveling to Calgary for his core internal medicine residency. He then returned to the University of British Columbia for a fellowship in General Internal Medicine for additional training in point-of-care ultrasound and perioperative medicine: the care of patients before and after surgery.
With his extra training in perioperative medicine he hopes to help patients better understand their preoperative risks, how to modify those risks, and treat any complications. With his involvement in the Get to Surgery program he hopes to merge his interests in obesity and cardiovascular risk to help educate and guide patients through the surgical process, addressing the patient as a whole, while providing patient-centered care. His primary goals are to help patients feel empowered about their decisions while providing a positive healthcare experience.
In his free time, he enjoys skiing, hiking, or playing board games with friends.
Lisa Cramm, BscN, RN
Lisa Cramm, BScN, RN
Lisa was raised in White Rock, BC and graduated from University of Victoria with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology in 2003. What do you do with that, you ask? You travel the world while pondering your future and realize you were meant to be a nurse!
Lisa went back to school and graduated from Dalhousie as a Registered Nurse in 2010. After graduation she worked in Cardiovascular Intensive Care in Halifax and then in the ICU in Fort McMurray. In September 2015 Lisa began working as a nurse in obesity medicine at Revolution Medical Clinic. Lisa now lives on the Sunshine Coast where she balances her time between community nursing , health coaching and Obesity Medicine. She is an expert in motivational communication and has developed seminars for patients on emotional eating.
“Working in Obesity and Prevention Medicine has caused me to fall in love with nursing all over again and has left me more fulfilled than ever. I always say, in the ICU I helped save lives, working in obesity medicine I help change lives..... there’s a big difference.”
Ali Zentner, MD, FRCPC, Diplomate ABOM
Dr. Ali Zentner
Dr. Ali Zentner received her undergraduate medical degree from McMaster University and completed her Internal Medicine Residency with an extra year of Cardiology training at the University of Calgary. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine.
Dr. Zentner began practicing Internal Medicine in Alberta in 2001. In 2004, Ali moved to Vancouver and established her own community based practice in West Vancouver focusing on obesity and cardiometabolic risk management. She has become a national leader in the field. She has built a number of bariatric programs in BC over the last decade.
Ali is the founder and director of NO FAT SHAME - an organization committed to fighting weight bias in medicine through education and training of medical student and health care providers at all levels.
She has also developed a mentoring program for physicians to learn about obesity medicine and has trained hundreds of doctors to date on how to practice compassionate evidence based care in the field.
In 2015 Dr. Zentner built Revolution Medical Clinic and serves as its Medical Director. Revolution is the realization of almost two decades in practice in Obesity and Metabolic Medicine.
The GET TO SURGERY Program was born out of the idea that the time has come to abolish the stigma and bias in orthopedic medicine and provide patients with a path to better health WITHIN the medical community. We owe all patients an opportunity for treatment; they should not be left on their own to self manage their own disease.
“My patients are the fuel behind all that I do. These indeed are the most inspiring and resilient people. Their tenacity and their bravery make me want to be better every day. Revolution Medical really is a dream realized. It is the medical model that I had always hoped for. It provides a comprehensive multidisciplinary approach to metabolic medicine in a positive and proactive way. Revolution empowers patients and treats them on their own terms. It values the patient as the key decision maker and treats people where they are. When you treat a disease- you win, you lose. When you treat a person- you win every time. “