Obesity is a rapidly increasing problem that has wide implications for the National Health Service. At present, obesity is not being addressed in a joined-up and standardised manner. This has downstream effects for the health service, the economy and society as a whole. As highlighted by a recent RCP report, there is a need for a new class of dedicated specialists who can evaluate individuals with health problems that are related to obesity, direct their care in a coordinated fashion, act as an advocate for their needs and be able to liaise with multiple different services to improve the provision of patient care. In this article, we discuss the role of this specialist - the bariatric physician.
Keywords: Obesity; bariatric physician; bariatric surgery; health policy; weight management.