patients came through surgery in excellent shape. Dr. Vitcov consult-
ed with the center's clinical leadership and decided to expand the BMI
limit to 45 for healthy patients with no comorbidities other than obesi-
ty. "That was done in the context of checking with several other cen-
ters in the nation and asking them what they do," he says. "Some had
no limit or a limit of 50."
Planning ahead
Dr. Vitcov says Administrator Jessie Scott, MBA, deserves most of the
credit for creating a culture of safety. "She's a true believer in patient safe-
ty, and that filters down through to the head nurse, who's another true
believer," says Dr. Vitcov. "It's only a couple layers down to the frontline
nurses in the OR, so they've also become true believers." But even some
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