Surgery inside a mall?
Liposuction, dialysis, thermage, corrective eye surgery or 4D ultrasound in a mall? Shoppers may now avail themselves of these medical procedures — and more — at the De Los Santos-STI MegaClinic at SM Megamall, which aims to bring complete, modern and convenient health care to the mall.
In less than two years, MegaClinic has made its mark. With its 2,300 square meters, the clinic houses several state-of-the art medical equipment and performs pioneering medical procedures.
Just recently, MegaClinic’s surgeons, composed of some of the country’s leading surgeons, have performed the first Laparoscopic Bariatric surgery and the first Laparoscopic gall bladder surgery in an out-patient setting.
Laparoscopic surgery, also referred to as minimally invasive surgery, describes the performance of surgical procedures with the assistance of a video camera and several thin instruments. During the surgical procedure, small incisions of up to half an inch are made instead of the traditional large incisions.
Through this procedure, patients have less post-operative discomfort and quicker recovery times. The patient is able to go home just a few hours after the surgery.
Comprehensive approach to fight obesity
The team of surgeons was headed by Dr. Hildegardes Dineros, Obesity program director and chief bariatric surgeon of MegaClinic’s LivLite Bariatric (Obesity) Center. This new partnership further attests to the clinic’s commitment in providing the latest medical procedures to its patients.
Dineros and his team address the growing concern of obesity in the country today. According to Dineros, one out of four Filipinos is overweight. Statistics also show that there are around three million obese Filipinos today and one million of those are severely obese.
The clinic’s obesity center conducts a comprehensive approach to deal with the obesity problem. Each treatment is tailored according to the patient’s body mass index category and presence of co-morbidities or conditions that are caused by or affected by excessive weight, such as diabetes and hypertension.
The center offers a wide range of treatments, which includes surgical and non-surgical management of obesity. The non-surgical program includes counseling for behavior and lifestyle changes, nutritional interventions, exercise programs and pharmacotherapy.
The surgical approach is usually recommended for people who are at least 75 pounds over ideal body weight and have life-threatening problems such as sleep apnea. Persons who failed to lose weight through diet and exercise are also ideal candidates.
Bariatric surgery, also known as weight loss surgery, refers to the various surgical procedures performed to treat obesity by modification of the gastrointestinal tract to reduce nutrient intake and/or absorption.
“Bariatric surgery will limit your caloric intake. When the caloric intake is less than expenditure, your body will use up the stored fats. So you shrink little by little,” Dineros explains.
To attest to the life-changing effect of Bariatric surgery is Dr. Dineros’ 62-year-old patient who trimmed down from 208 lbs. to 120 lbs. “At first, it was difficult because I had to adjust my eating habits. Now, I already feel full with one or two spoonfuls of food but then my sugar and cholesterol levels are even below normal,” the patient says.
“I am now happy that I have a healthy lifestyle. I am very comfortable with my weight and I can do my activities, including ballroom dancing,” she adds.
One-stop clinic
MegaClinic has a wide array of state-of-the-art medical equipment, multi-specialty centers, diagnostic and surgical facilities. It boasts of a team of more than 200 doctors and medical staff with diverse areas of specialization, responsible for taking care of the patients’ different medical needs.
“It’s a one-stop clinic with an extensive range of medical services; everything that a patient needs is right here,” says Dr. Nilo De Los Santos, MegaClinic’s medical director.
Since its launch, the clinic has already served more than 200,000 patients and has performed more than 3,000 surgeries such as orthopedic, plastic surgery, LASIK and OB-Gyne surgeries.
“On a regular day, we serve at least 600 patients and on Saturdays, we see 700 to 800 patients. This is already comparative to the census of a mid-sized hospital,” De Los Santos says.
The doctors who comprise the MegaClinic team are known authorities in their fields of expertise. Part of the pioneering group of “mall doctors,” they have decades of medical experience and have kept themselves continuously updated with the latest treatment developed in the medical industry.
“MegaClinic will keep on upping the ante in terms of providing medical services to our patients. We will continue to strive to provide our patients with the latest and most advanced medical equipment and procedures,” concludes De Los Santos.
(For more information, you may call MegaClinic at 637-9661 to 68 or visit MegaClinic at the fifth level of SM Megamall Building A in Mandaluyong City.)
