What is cemms?

Centers of Excellence for Metabolic Medicine and Surgery

CEMMS Was created under the guidance of Prof Tess van der Merwe to ensure that patients in South Africa will have the opportunity of understanding and knowing which bariatric centers will provide ethical and excellent services in the field of medicine. Bariatric surgery can often become a fly-by-night procedure which should be avoided at all costs. 

​

SASSO greatly encourages all patients interested in bariatric care to seek out a Centre of Excellence from our database and not a falsely accredited surgeon. 

​

CEMMS is partnered with SASSO to ensure the vigilant accreditation of surgeons and facilities to not only promote the safety of patients, but also aid in the medical aid funding process of the procedure. 

​

Medical aids stand to benefit significantly from the high resolution of many co-morbidities of obesity, should they offer reimbursement for metabolic surgery. 

​

CEMMS has committed itself to ensuring that all teams who are functioning in the field of bariatric surgery are adequately trained. 

CEMMS strives to make bariatric surgery accessible to those patients who show a very clear and favourable risk-benefit ratio. 

The Bariatric surgery program in South Africa consists of specific guidelines to facilitate safe practice in metabolic surgery. The guidelines are evidence based and follow the protocols of major international organizations such as the ASBS, IFSO, SRC and others. 

Safe bariatric treatment requires thorough evaluation of candidates by a multi-disciplinary team, proper preparation and safe surgery. This team includes an endocrinologist, pulmonary physician, cardiologist, and anaesthetist with experience in treating morbid obese patients, a psychologist, psychiatrist, ICU specialists, accredited nutritionists and physiotherapist.