For a number of personal reasons, Teri has found it necessary to take some time out from her role as Owlss Macclesfield Group Leader. We would like to thank Teri for the work she has done for Owlss in the last year and especially in her capacity as the mentoring coordinator for Macclesfield and hope, when the time is right, she will return to the group and continue to play an active role in supporting members in the Macclesfield area. 

In order to move the Macclesfield Group forward, we are delighted to advise you that two new Group Leaders have been appointed for the Cheshire and Northwest Area.  Linda (username Sashatina) and Dave (username Cobra5107) have both agreed to take on the role of Group Leaders in addition to Teri who continues to be Macclesfield Mentoring Coordinator for the time being whilst we can find someone else willing to take on the position.

The next Owlss Group Meeting in Macclesfield is to be held at the Spire Regency on Wednesday, 10th February, 2010 starting at 6.30pm (Now confirmed).

This month's meeting will be a little more formal than usual.  Members have indicated that they would prefer a bit more structure to the format so in an attempt address this, we are introducing a regular topic for discussion to encourage positive and valuable discussion. 

This month's topic will be 'Head Hunger and the strategies needed to help you cope'. and we encourage you to come along and discuss ways to deal with it.

There will still be time for general discussion and to get to know each other as well as the opportunity to ask questions of the bariatric team members attending, but we hope, by introducing a topic for discussion, those attending will takes away a greater understanding of what surgery involves and the best ways to plan for it and ensure its success afterwards.

For directions to the hospital, click on the photo above.

It is quite apparent from the number of posts on the forum that our members in the Macclesfield area are disappointed that there has been no regular Group Meetings for a while now and with the December 2009 meeting being cancelled at such short notice (much to the annoyance of those planning to attend!), we are determined to do everything possible to prevent this happening in the future.

As well as the massive media attention focussing on the 'postcode lottery' patients face when being referred for bariatric surgery, in Hull yesterday (21st January 2010), it was revealed that 36 patients awaiting weight loss surgery have been removed from the NHS waiting list.

The Hull Daily Mail reported:

"NHS Hull cuts patients from weight-loss surgery waiting list"

'MORE than 30 people who were on a waiting list for weight loss surgery have been told they must now look at other ways of shedding the pounds.

Health officials in Hull have decided 36 people previously expecting surgery should try other weight-loss options, such as fitness programmes and diet schemes.

NHS Hull, the city's primary care trust (PCT), insists the move – which comes after a review of those on the waiting list – is not a cost-cutting measure.

The review of the patients due to receive the surgery, known as bariatric surgery, was carried out after a new centre for weight management services opened in Hull in April last year.

People in the city wanting to lose weight now have various options, including the Fit Fans scheme that requires them people to join a structured 12-week programme, and Why Weight?, which offers nutritional advice and teaches cooking skills.

Officials have only recently reviewed the cases on the waiting list, which also considered those people placed on the list before April.

NHS Hull then sent letters out to those affected earlier this month.

Our first Hull Group Meeting of 2010 will be held at the Spire Hull & East Riding on SUNDAY, 21st February.

Hopefully, this will encourage some of our members who live a distance from Hull to attend.

We plan to start at 3.00pm, ending around 4.45pm.

We respectfully ask you not arrive at the hospital before 2.45pm as the cafeteria will be busy serving staff lunchtime meals.

It is hoped to have a guest speaker on the day and once confirmed, we will publish details here.

Whilst surfing the net for the latest information on Bariatric Surgery, I came across this rather intriguing article. If you are a bypass patient, I am sure you will find it most interesting:

"In a study published in the July issue of the Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, John Morton, MD, associate professor of surgery at the medical school [Stanford University School of Medicine, California, USA], showed that patients who take probiotics after the gastric-bypass procedure tend to shed more pounds than those who don’t take the supplements. Probiotics are the so-called “good” bacteria found in yogurt as well as in over-the-counter dietary supplements that help in the digestion of food."

To read the complete article, click here.

The Owlss book club has been running quite successfully for a while now in Hull and Scunthorpe and we are hoping to expand the service to Macclesfield in the near future.

With such a lot of members now, there is a high demand for our books and inevitably, there is never enough to go round.  It would therefore be very much appreciated if those members who have borrowed a book ensure it is returned promptly. Any books taken out at one meeting should always be returned at the next.  If, for any reason you are unable to attend a meeting, please contact us so we can make alternative arrangement for its return.

If you have a book to do with weight loss surgery that you no longer need we would be very pleased to add it to our collection.

We have been asked if it would be possible to print off articles and other information to your desk top printers as many members would like to pass on details to others who cannot access the internet.

This is now possible, simply click on the printer icon that appears at the top of each article. 

We do ask however, that you to give due consideration to the environment before churning out page after page.