Streamline Surgical

Shaw Somers has been an NHS consultant surgeon since 1996 and specialises in Upper Gastrointestinal surgery. Before this, he was a Senior Lecturer and Honorary consultant at St James' University in Leeds and Associate Professor at The Prince of Wales Hospital in Hong Kong

His bariatric surgical training started in 1994 in Leeds with Stephen Pollard, one of the UK's first obesity surgeons. Since 1998, he has provided an NHS obesity service to the South of England, initially at King Edward VII Hospital in Midhurst and subsequently at St Richard's Hospital in Chichester. He now practices at centres around the South of England.

He has experience of over 2500 bariatric operations including over 1400 gastric bypasses, 700 gastric bands and 400 complex or revision procedures. His mortality rate is exemplary (less than 0.2%) despite operating on patients of extreme size (421kg - BMI 139) and with severe associated illnesses.

In addition to being a recognised trainer in Bariatric Surgery and a council member of the British Obesity Surgery Society, he has a strong academic pedigree with over 30 peer-reviewed publications. He is also an honorary reader in Surgery at the University of Portsmouth.

In addition to all this, Shaw Somers is Discovery Home & Health's 'Fat Doctor', the bariatric surgeon who battles to help the nation's seriously overweight. The job not only requires surgical expertise, but also political and educational skills in helping GP's and health commissioners understand the problems that overweight people face. With a large number of followers, he has won over many with his great charm, empathy and expertise.

Guy Slater was appointed as an NHS consultant surgeon in 2004 specialising in upper GI cancer surgery, laparoscopic surgery and bariatric surgery. He has a personal experience of over 800 bariatric procedures including over 300 laparoscopic adjustable gastric bands, 400 laparoscopic and open Roux-en-Y gastric bypasses. In common with Shaw he has a particularly interest in the super-obese patient, BMI 60 kg/m2 and above. He has an in-hospital mortality rate of zero despite operating on the biggest and most sick patients including patients with a BMI over 90 kg/m2.

Guy trained at St. George’s Hospital, London qualifying in 1990. His surgical training took place in the South West Thames Region culminating in his Certificate of Completion of Specialist Training in 2002. Guy spent 2003 in Australia completing a fellowship in Advance Laparoscopic Surgery at the Royal Brisbane Hospital, under the tutelage of George Fielding. George Fielding is one of the world’s foremost bariatric surgeons and is now based at New York University Hospital. Guy was appointed to the consultant staff at St. Richard’s Hospital, Chichester in 2004.

Guy has published widely in the field of Upper Gastro-intestinal surgery including eight bariatric publications written with George Fielding. He is often invited to lecture to other healthcare professionals on bariatric surgery. He joins Shaw Somers for the third series of the Fat Doctor and has previously appeared on TV in “Fat boy to Slim” and radio with in Dr Mark Porter’s Radio 4 medical program “Casenotes”.

Chris Pring was first appointed as an NHS Consultant Surgeon in 2008 and he is a fulltime member of the team at St Richard's Hospital, Chichester. He has been performing bariatric surgery since 2004, undertaking laparoscopic gastric band, laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, revisional bariatric surgery and placement of the intragastric balloon. He has performed over 600 bariatric procedures and his mortality rate is zero.

Chris graduated from Cambridge University in 1994. He pursued specialist bariatric surgical training in Yorkshire, Brisbane and Florida. He is an active member of the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS), the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity (IFSO) and the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgeons (ASMBS). He has secured a number of NHS research grants, had a range of articles published in peer reviewed journals and he regularly presents work at national and international meetings. He is frequently invited to review articles for specialist obesity surgery journals and he often lectures to other healthcare professionals on bariatric surgery. He is a recognised trainer of bariatric surgery for the NHS.