If you are significantly overweight, you may be at risk for a wide variety of health issues, including diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, breathing problems and depression. And, if you have had trouble losing weight and/or keeping it off, surgical weight loss may be a solution.

The Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Management at St. Luke’s Medical Center offers a comprehensive obesity treatment program that combines weight loss surgery with diet, exercise and counseling to help you achieve and maintain your weight loss goals.

Our program offers the experience of skilled health care professionals, including a bariatric surgeon, psychiatrist, dietitian and program coordinator to support you throughout the process. And, new patients get additional encouragement through peer groups and from previous patients who have successfully lose weight with surgery.

Candidacy for weight loss surgery is determined by criteria published by the National Institutes of Health and is based on Body Mass Index (BMI). Body Mass Index is a measure of weight and height. This measure is used to determine if a person is underweight, at a healthy weight, overweight or obese. Surgical candidates have a BMI of 40 or more, or a BMI of 35 to 39.9 with one or more co-morbidities. A BMI of 35-40 is typically equivalent to 80-100 pounds of extra weight.

To learn more about our program, call us toll-free at 1-800-248-5553 or register for our next FREE seminar.

Meet the Surgeons

Daniel T. Fang, M.D.
Bariatric Surgeon

Dr. Fang completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He graduated from the University of Maryland School of Medicine and completed his residency at Case Western Reserve University Hospitals in Ohio.

After medical school and residency, Dr. Fang established a practice in Utah where he performed hundreds of general surgeries and laparoscopic surgeries. He came to Arizona more than five years ago and joined a private physician practice that specializes in general surgery, endoscopy, and bariatric surgery including the laparoscopic gastric bypass and the laparoscopic adjustable banding. Dr. Fang serves as the Medical Director of the Bridges Centre for Surgical Weight Management at St. Luke’s Medical Center and has been a part of the program for more than five years.

He currently serves as a clinical instructor for the Phoenix Integrated Surgical Residency, is a clinical assistant professor at the A. T. Still University - Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, and a clinical instructor at Midwestern University - Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine.

He is certified by the National Board of Medical Examiners and the American Board of Surgery, and a member of the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons. Dr. Fang has been designated as a Center of Excellence surgeon by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.

Hilario Juarez, M.D., F.A.C.S.
Bariatric Surgeon

Dr. Juarez completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Wyoming. He graduated from the University of Colorado Medical School. He completed an internship and his residency at Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix.

After his residency, Dr. Juarez established a private practice in Phoenix where he performed thousands of general surgeries and bariatric procedures including the laparoscopic gastric bypass and laparoscopic adjustable banding.

Dr. Juarez has been part of the Bridges Centre for Surgical Weight Management at St. Luke’s Medical Center for more than eight years. He specializes in laparoscopic gastric bybass, laparoscopic adjustable lap banding, and the laparoscopic gastric sleeve procedure. Dr. Juarez has performed more than 3,000 gastric surgeries and 10,000 general surgeries.

Dr. Juarez is certified by the American Heart Association and the American College of Surgeons, and a member of the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons. He has been designated as a Center of Excellence surgeon by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.