DOZENS of Islanders have been waiting over a year for weight-loss surgery – with just 14 publicly funded procedures able to be carried out each year.
A recent report presented to the Health Advisory Board confirmed that demand “always” outstrips capacity for bariatric surgery
And, consultant general and oesophago-gastric surgeon Jonathan Shenfine has confirmed to the JEP that there are no current plans to increase funding to expand current capacity levels.
The Health Advisory Board was told that there are currently 59 Islanders who have been waiting more than one year for bariatric surgery.
The report presented to the board said: “Bariatric surgery capacity is 14 cases per year with demand always outstripping capacity.”
Also known as weight-loss or metabolic surgery, bariatric surgery involves procedures that make changes to the digestive system to help with long-term weight loss and improve obesity-related health conditions. Common types include gastric sleeve and gastric bypass, which work by reducing stomach size or altering nutrient absorption.
At the end of July, there were 83 Islanders waiting for bariatric surgery. The median waiting time in Jersey is around a-year-and-a-half, with 10% of local patients waiting almost three years.
Mr Shenfine explained that public patients on the waiting lists for bariatric surgery are prioritised according to those deemed most at risk or those where the risk-to-benefit ratio is more favourable.
“A multidisciplinary team, made up of a surgeon and a physician with an interest in obesity and metabolic medicine, decide which patients should be prioritised,” he said.
Following questions from the JEP, Mr Shenfine confirmed that “at present, no decisions have been made regarding any additional financial commitments in expanding bariatric surgery”.
He added: “It should be noted that due to the high quality of the service offered in Jersey, it has been chosen as a training centre for NHS surgeons to attend to finesse their skills in bariatric surgery.”
This training course ran for the first time this year and Health and Care Jersey has been approached to run it again next year, according to the consultant.
The Health Advisory Board report also suggested that the introduction of injectable weight-loss medication “may have a positive impact on public waiting lists for bariatric surgery”.
It stated that GLP-1 medications – including Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro – are being “explored as an alternative to bariatric surgery”.
But Mr Shenfine stated that “GLP-1s are not an alternative to surgery” .
He explained: “Their main place is to support Islanders with significant obesity related co-morbidities such as diabetes whereas bariatric surgery gives more effective and sustainable results.
“GLP-1s do have a role in the management of patients with obesity and may help people avoid reaching the levels of obesity that typically require bariatric surgery.”
Jersey’s public health director Professor Peter Bradley added: “While weight management medicines are a tool for treating obesity and should be used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity, Public Health and other government departments have a number of existing and planned initiatives which aim to support people manage their weight and prevent them from becoming overweight in the first place.”
He said that these are outlined in the current Food and Nutrition Strategy and its replacement Food and Nutrition Framework, which was published in March 2025.
The government is considering whether Jersey should follow UK practice in allowing doctors providing publicly funded care to prescribe GLP-1 agonists like Mounjaro for weight loss for those over an eligible BMI.
An advisory panel has been created to discuss whether, and under what circumstances, these drugs should be funded through Jersey’s Health Insurance Fund.
The panel’s findings are expected to be reported to the Pharmaceutical Benefit Advisory Committee later this month.
