James McDonald of Palm Bay is grateful he chose Health First’s NewFit Surgical Weight-loss Program. He did his research, even scheduled consultations at other centers – “I did do some shopping around” – but he favored his hometown program. And three years on, he has a sense of how right he was from the online communities he belongs to.

“I’m in bariatric groups on Facebook. The gastric sleeve patient group on Facebook has 200,000 or 300,000 in it, and you see ‘How much should I be eating?’ get posted. Wait, they didn’t tell you?” he says. “I don’t know that I ever saw that question asked on the NewFit patient Facebook group.”

Quality patient outcomes – helped along by empowering patients with information – is one reason NewFit has once again received national accreditation from the American College of Surgeons Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program (MBSAQIP). Accreditation is an endorsement from the surgeon group that NewFit is performing safe and effective metabolic and bariatric surgeries.

“It’s a rigorous process, and peer reviewed,” says Health First Surgeon Ken Tieu, MD, “It’s proof that our surgeons are well qualified, safe and effective, that we have the staffing to meet patients’ needs, that our anesthesiologists, dieticians, physician partners and nurses are there for patients, and that our operating rooms and imaging equipment meet the highest standards.”

As an MBSAQIP-accredited hospital, NewFit also becomes an ACS Surgical Quality Partner. Being a Surgical Quality Partner signals that a hospital is dedicated to consistently improving procedures and approaches. Patients know the surgical center is dedicated to quality and self-improvement – verified or accredited by the ACS.

“On top of our excellence across the board, we have to demonstrate that we’re constantly improving care. Our surgeons are involved in continuing medical education, and we’re improving patients’ post-operative experiences.”

READ the full story, including what finally moved McDonald to seek a surgical weight-loss solution, in Space Coast Daily HERE.