# 1 Welcome Welcome to the first edition of the Bariatric Surgery Registry (BSR) Newsletter! We plan to send you regular updates of the progress of the BSR as it rolls out across Australia and New Zealand. The BSR will only achieve its aim of improving the quality and safety of bariatric surgery in our countries with your support. Therefore, it is important that you see the data we are collecting and the information we provide back as useful, and we welcome any feedback, good or bad, as we strive to improve our processes. In this edition of the newsletter we will give you an overview of the history of the BSR, an update of our current status, as well as introduce you to some of our BSR staff that you will get to know as the registry rolls out. Background The BSR was developed in response to calls from clinicians for a resource that would track outcomes from bariatric surgery across our community, ensuring the quality and safety of these procedures. The Obesity Surgery Society of Australia and New Zealand (OSSANZ) took the leadership role in developing the Registry, and in 2009, after a tender process, appointed the Monash University School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine as custodians. After receiving seed funding from OSSANZ and Industry, the pilot commenced in 2012, overseen by the steering committee. On the back of the pilot data, the Registry received seed funding from the Commonwealth. In 2014 the pilot data and registry methodology was confirmed, and the national roll-out began. Aims The primary aim of the registry is to track and monitor the quality and safety of bariatric surgery. The stated aims of the Registry are to: 1) Record the immediate safety of bariatric surgery in Australia and New Zealand 2) Study longitudinally the safety and efficacy of bariatric surgery in Australia • Procedure • Devices • Complications • Re-operations Welcome Background Aims of the registry Progress update Meet our Staff News/Events Contact Us Thanks to our current sponsors: 3) Track key health changes following bariatric surgery • Weight change • Diabetes To conclude, the registry will gather and collate information on patient weight
Masters of Public Health and more recently a PhD. academic achievements triggered her interest in epidemiology of obesity, cardiovascular disease, osteoarthritis and diabetes mellitus. Monira has also been involved in large surveys and cohort studies. In 2011 Monira was awarded the prestigious Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (IPRS), Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) and as a top student of the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences and was awarded the Faculty of Excellence Award. This is just a snippet of Monira’s achievements and we have no doubt Monira will achieve even more during her work with the Bariatric Surgery Registry and we welcome her expertise and knowledge. Ossanz Meeting 2014 Wellington In mid-November, registry staff attended the annual Obesity Surgery Society of Australia and New Zealand (OSSANZ) conference held in Wellington, NZ. The OSSANZ Conference was a great opportunity for registry staff to liaise with surgeons and also build and develop client relationships with medical device organization’s and others interested in the registry. Likewise, it was an opportunity to exchange ideas, answer questions and hopefully promote and educate people about the success and importance of this initiative. We enjoyed meeting those of you who popped by our booth and look forward to seeing you all in Hamilton Island next year! Did you know? The Patient Explanatory statement is now available in 5 languages. If you need patients to be sent the information in a language other than English, please let us know. Similarly if you need flyers or posters in languages other than English, let us know and we can have these provided to your practice. Thank you We hope you have enjoyed reading the first issue of the BSR quarterly newsletter we look forward to continued contact and keeping you informed about the progress of the registry Contact Us: Charity Administration Assistant E: A: 6, 99 Commercial Road, Melbourne VIC 3004 T: 03 9903 0725 F: 03 9903 071