Council

Council of Management members

Prof. James Byrne

BOMSS President, Trustee, Council member
Consultant Surgeon
University Hospital Southampton

Biography

Professor James Byrne is a consultant Surgeon at University Hospital Southampton since 2003 and Honorary Principal Research Fellow at the university of Southampton. After qualifying at Manchester he trained in the North West of England and Brisbane, Australia.

Jim served as BOMSS treasurer and member of the National bariatric surgery Registry committee from 2017-2020 and was elected BOMSS Secretary in 2021, then becoming President in 2023.

Jim is a bariatric and oesophagogastric cancer surgeon, and is committed to developing the evidence base for surgical treatment of patients with severe and complex obesity. He is a member of the trial management group for BYBAND Sleeve, a £4.2M multicentre randomised clinical trial comparing the outcomes of gastric banding, sleeve and bypass across 12 UK centres in over 1300 UK patients, that is due to report in 2022. He has also helped lead a £2.4M randomised trial of the Endobarrier. He is Surgery lead for Wessex NIHR clinical research network.

Jim is honoured to serve as BOMSS President and Trustee and is passionate about supporting the vision, mission and values of BOMSS as the newly independent professional body serving the needs of patients suffering with severe and complex obesity across the UK.

Ahmed Ahmed

BOMSS Secretary, Trustee, Council member, NBSR Committee, Endoscopy Committee
Consultant in upper gastrointestinal surgery and Lead Bariatric Surgeon
Imperial College London / Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Biography

Mr Ahmed Ahmed is a consultant in upper gastrointestinal surgery and lead bariatric surgeon at Imperial Weight Centre. He has performed over 10,000 laparoscopic bariatric procedures, including over 7,000 gastric bypasses. He has trained in general and upper GI surgery in the UK and also at Stanford University and the University of Rochester in the US. He trains other surgeons in the field of bariatric surgery and is on the faculty of numerous courses on bariatric surgery. He is also actively involved in bariatric surgery research and has numerous publications in peer reviewed journals. He is a member of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), International Federation of Surgery for Obesity (IFSO), Society of American Gastroenterological and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES), Association of Upper GI Surgeons (AUGIS) and the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS). In 2007, he was awarded the International Federation of Surgery for Obesity (IFSO) scholarship. Mr Ahmed is often consulted by other professionals and medicolegal experts for his opinions on complex bariatric surgery cases. His Imperial Weight Centre bariatric surgery unit in London has been designated as an international centre of excellence for bariatric surgery and he now sits on the prestigious International Bariatric Surgery Review Committee (IBSRC).

Mr Ahmed was elected to council of the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS) in 2017 and took over as Treasurer in 2021. He was also elected to the council of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2020.

Kamal Mahawar

Council member, Trustee
Consultant General/ Bariatric Surgeon & NatSSIP Lead
South Tyneside and Sunderland NHSFT

Biography

Kamal Mahawar is a Consultant General/ Bariatric Surgeon & NatSSIP Lead at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, and Visiting Professor at the University of Sunderland. Mr. Mahawar is a member of the BOMSS council and chairs its patient safety committee. He also sits on the scientific committee of IFSO and the National Bariatric Surgery Registry (NBSR) committee. He was one of the editors of the second and the third NBSR reports.

Kamal has authored over 175 peer-reviewed publications, multiple book chapters in prestigious titles, and two books widely appreciated in media ("The Ethical Doctor" published by Harper Collins and "Fight with Fat") He is the Co-Editor of “Journal of Bariatric Surgery” published by Wolters Kluwer and Associate Editor of “Obesity Surgery”, “Annals of Royal College of Surgeons England”, and “Clinical Obesity”. In addition, Kamal is on the editorial board of SOARD and other journals. The journal “Obesity Surgery” published his biography in 2018.

Kamal sits on the council of the ASGBI (and is its Associate Director for conferences). He is the Northern England representative on the council of the British Benign Upper Gastrointestinal Surgical Society (BBUGSS) and is the chief co-ordinator of The Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeons (TUGS).

Sally Abbott

BOMSS IHP representative, Council member
Academic and Clinical Dietitian

Biography

Sally Abbott works both as an academic and as a clinical dietitian, in Tier 3 and Tier 4 obesity services. Her research interests include improving patient access to obesity treatments and dietary management pre- and post-bariatric surgery. She was the European winner of the IFSO Integrated Health Scholarship in 2018 for her commitment to bariatric surgery dietetics. In 2021, Sally was certified as an EASO National Clinical Fellow in recognition of her clinical experience in obesity management.

Sally currently sits on the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS) council as an IHP representative and is also the Bariatric Officer for the British Dietetic Association (BDA) Obesity Specialist Group committee.

Sherif Awad

BOMSS Educational Lead, Trustee, Council member,

Biography

Sherif Awad is Consultant Obesity, Upper GI & Laparoscopic Surgeon at East-Midlands Bariatric & Metabolic Institute (EMBMI), Royal Derby Hospital, Derby. He is Council Member and Educational Lead for BOMSS, has developed and delivers monthly BOMSS journal clubs and educational webinars. He is involved in organising the Annual BOMSS training day and Society Meeting. Sherif developed the post-CCT Royal College of Surgeons of England Bariatric Fellowship at EMBMI. His expertise is recognised Internationally and is regularly invited to deliver International and National lectures on, amongst other topics, improving safety, outcomes and surgical pathways for patients undergoing Obesity Surgery. He has co-authored international guidelines on Enhanced Recovery After Bariatric Surgery.

Altaf Awan

BOMSS Council ALSGBI Representative
Consultant Bariatric, Benign pancreaticobiliary and Robotic surgeon
East Midlands

Biography

Mr Altaf Awan is a specialist consultant robotic, laparoscopic, bariatric (weight loss) & benign pancreaticobiliary surgeon. He was awarded his higher research degree (MD) from the University of Nottingham for his work on role of hormones in oesophageal carcinogenesis. Following completion of his higher surgical training in East Midlands, he completed his fellowship training in advanced laparoscopic and bariatric (weight loss) surgery. He is one of the senior and experienced bariatric surgeons at East Midlands Bariatric and Metabolic Institute (EMBMI), a regional centre that provides comprehensive bariatric service to patients from East Midlands.

Mr Awan specialises in bariatric (weight loss) surgery, surgical management of gallstones, bile duct stones, acute pancreatitis, acid reflux and all types of abdominal wall hernias. He has a keen interest in laparoscopic surgery for emergency cases and has helped develop innovative minimally invasive surgical techniques in the management of emergency conditions such as complex acute pancreatitis. He regularly undertakes keyhole surgery for surgical conditions that present as an emergency and affect gastrointestinal tract or abdominal wall. Mr Awan operative work on laparoscopic surgery for pancreatitis, bile duct stone, hernia and robotic surgery has been awarded top (First) prizes at UK prestigious National Surgical Scientific Meetings.

Mr Awan is Director of Education (Laparoscopic & Robotic surgery) for Association of Laparoscopic Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland (ALSGBI UK). Mr Awan is also a keen surgical trainer, a Course director and faculty for ALSGBI Key skills in advanced laparoscopic surgery, LapPass, Royal college of surgeons England (RCSEng) Core skills in Laparoscopic surgery courses.

Mr Awan is actively involved in clinical research with several publications in peer reviewed journals including work on weight loss surgery. He has a keen interest in surgical innovation to improve operative safety and is currently investigating role of Indocyanine Green (ICG) dye during minimally invasive surgery. He was invited for an interview at the Third International Bariatric Club (IBC) Oxford University World Congress 2022 and provided useful insight into role of fluorescence dye in bariatric (weight loss) surgery. He regularly delivers talks as an invited speaker at the national surgical meetings and his most recent talk was on role and advantages of robotic surgery in gastric bypass for weight loss at ALSGBI UK Annual scientific meeting held in Newcastle.

Mr Awan is currently leading development of robotic surgery in bariatric (weight loss), abdominal wall hernia and hiatus hernia surgery at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton and holds portfolio of Joint Multispecialty clinical lead for robotic surgery. Mr Awan is a member of the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS), Association of Laparoscopic Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland (ALSGBI), European Association of Endoscopic Surgery (EAES), British hernia Society (BHS) and European Hernia Society (EHS).

Nick Carter

BOMSS Council member
Consultant Laparoscopic Upper GI Robotic & Bariatric Surgeon
Portsmouth

Biography

Nick has worked in the NHS for 22 years and as a Consultant in Oesophagogastric and Bariatric Surgery at Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust for 9 of these where he is the Clinical Lead for Bariatic Surgery. As part of his training he undertook a specialist fellowship in Bariatric Surgery in University College London.

He is a member of he Trial Management Group For the BYBAND Sleeve Trial. He has co-authored the chapter on Extreme Obesity Surgery in the book Obesity, Bariatric & Metabolic Surgery.

Nick started Robotic UGI & Bariatric Surgery at Portsmouth Hospital in February 2019 and now travels around the UK proctoring surgeons in Robotic Surgery. He enjoys teaching and is involved in delivering multiple courses each year.

Nick is honoured to have been voted onto the BOMSS council and wants to help deliver the BOMSS vision of improving access to safe and effective treatment for people living with with severe and complex obesity across the UK

Yitka Graham

BOMSS Council member, Patient Safety Committee

Biography

Professor Yitka Graham is the BOMSS National Research Lead. Yitka is Head of the Helen McArdle Nursing and Care Research Institute and Associate Professor of Health Services Research at the University of Sunderland. As part of her academic role, she holds a research role in the Bariatric Surgical Unit at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust. Professor Graham's research interests are patient experiences of bariatric surgery, the psychosocial impact of bariatric surgery, challenging the stigma of obesity and the roles of the multidisciplinary team and workforce issues in bariatric surgical care.

Omar Khan

BOMSS Council member, NBSR Committee Chair, Patient Safety Committee member,

Biography

Aya Musbahi

BOMSS Council Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Lead
Post CCT Bariatric Fellow
Newcastle upon Tyne

Biography

Aya is a post CCT Bariatric Surgery fellow. Having completed higher surgical training, Aya has chosen to specialise in Bariatric Surgery. She also works as a CQC specialist advisor and also serves on a REC for the NIHR as well as the surgical representative for the EDI group for the RCPSG. She is interested in research and wants to help deliver a BOMSS vision for EDI in her tenure.

Chetan Parmar

BOMSS ASM Chair, Council member, Patient Safety Committee
Consultant Bariatric/UGI and General Surgeon & Clinical Lead
The Whittington Hospital NHS Trust, London

Biography

Chetan Parmar did his graduation and post-graduation from Maharaj Sayajirao University in India. He obtained DNB, postgraduate (PG) diploma in hospital management (PGDHHM) and PG diploma in medicolegal law (PGDMLS). After moving to the United Kingdom, he undertook training in the Northwest and Northeast of England before being appointed as a Consultant General, Bariatric and Metabolic Surgeon at Whittington Health NHS Trust, London. He is Head of the Department of Surgery. His passion for academics and innovation led him to be appointed as the covid research lead of the hospital during the pandemic and is the investigator for multiple National Institute for Health Research-funded trials. He is extremely fond of teaching junior doctors and medical students and was appointed Honorary Associate Professor by the reputed University College of London Medical School.

He has performed thousands of operations including bariatric surgeries and endoscopies. He is actively involved with collaborative, high quality, patient centred research. He is the author of over 100 peer reviewed publications in reputed journals. He has also authored a number of book chapters of a reputed publishing house. He is Associate Editor of the popular reference textbook for bariatric surgery ‘Obesity, Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery: A comprehensive guide, 2nd edition published by springer in 2022. He is an editor and reviewer of numerous esteemed journals. He is regularly invited to speak at national and international meetings globally. He is grateful and humbled to be conferred honorary professor title for his contributions. He is an active member of several societies including the IFSO, IBC and MGB-OAGB International Club.

He is chair of the Scientific Committee for the Annual Meeting of British Obesity & Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS). He is a member of the patient safety committee of BOMSS and thrives to improve patient outcomes.

Twitter@drcdparmar

Helen Parretti

BOMSS IHP representative, Council member
Consultant Clinical Senior Lecturer in Primary Care
University of East Anglia

Biography

Dr Helen Parretti is Consultant Clinical Senior Lecturer in Primary Care at the University of East Anglia with a research interest in obesity and a practising GP. Helen has several national roles related to obesity and has been involved in the development of national clinical guidance in post-bariatric surgery care. She is the RCGP representative to two RCP committees (Advisory Group on Nutrition, Weight and Health, and Joint Steering Committee for Endocrinology and Diabetes Mellitus) and the Society for Endocrinology working group “Defining the Future of Endocrinology”.

Helen sits on the British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society council as an IHP representative and is a co-opted member of the professional steering group for Obesity Empowerment Network.

Dimitri Pournaras

BOMSS Council member
Consultant Upper Gastrointestinal and Bariatric Surgeon
North Bristol NHS Trust

Biography

Dimitri Pournaras graduated from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece and undertook all his postgraduate training in the UK. He was awarded a Royal College of Surgeons of England Research Fellowship to conduct research on obesity, diabetes and metabolic surgery.

He completed his PhD in the Department of Investigative Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College London investigating the mechanism of action of bariatric surgery and the role of the gut on appetite and glucose homeostasis. He then trained in oesophagogastric surgery in Cambridge and Norwich. Following a Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery Fellowship approved by the Royal College of Surgeons of England in Musgrove Park Hospital, Taunton, he was appointed as a Consultant Upper Gastrointestinal and Bariatric Surgeon in North Bristol NHS Trust where he currently works as part of the multidisciplinary team treating obesity as a disease.

Dimitri is the inaugural British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society/Royal College of Surgeons of England bariatric Surgical Specialty Lead and is committed to high quality, collaborative, patient centred research with the objective to improve obesity care.

Dr Emma Shuttlewood

BOMSS IHP representative, Council member
Clinical Psychologist

Biography

Dr Emma Shuttlewood, Clinical Psychologist, gained her doctorate at the University of Oxford and has worked in both clinical and academic roles across various NHS organisations specialising in weight management, bariatric surgery and diabetes. She has significant experience setting up and developing the psychological aspect of weight management services, providing group and individual support for patients. Emma uses a range of psychological approaches within her clinical work with a preference for Solution Focused Practice and Compassion Focused Therapy. Emma currently works as the psychology lead in a specialist NHS weight management and bariatric surgery service for the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire.

Emma currently sits on the BOMSS council as an IHP representative and is also a member of the British Psychological Society’s Obesity Special Interest Group committee.

Chris Pring

Council member, Patient Safety Committee member, NBSR Committee
Bariatric Surgeon
St Richard's Hospital, Chichester

Biography

Roxanna Zakeri

BOMSS Council National Trainee Representative
Specialty Registrar in General Surgery
North Central & East London

Biography

Roxanna Zakeri is a Specialty Registrar in General Surgery in North Central & East London, specialising in Bariatric Surgery. She studied Medicine at the University of Cambridge and University College London, graduating in 2011. After foundation training in London, she undertook core surgical training in Yorkshire where she enjoyed her first exposure to bariatric surgery. Roxanna returned to London to embark on specialty training in 2015 and took time out of clinical practice to undertake an NIHR-funded PhD at the Centre for Obesity Research, University College London, into the role of gut hormones and genetics in determining bariatric surgery outcomes. She was awarded a Royal College of Surgeons of England research fellowship to continue her work.

Roxanna is passionate about collaborative research and strongly believes in the benefits of trainee-led research and education to improve training experiences and the care we ultimately provide. In 2019, she was appointed as Trainee Research Lead for BOMSS and developed a national network to deliver trainee-led NBSR and collaborative studies which are now underway.

Roxanna was elected as Trainee Representative for BOMSS in 2020, successfully boosting trainee engagement and reducing membership fees. Her main focus has been to increase bariatric training opportunities, both academic and clinical, and widen awareness of the specialty. She organises and co-hosts the monthly BOMSS journal club, ensuring trainees are supported to present each month, and is working with BOMSS Council to increase bariatric content in the intercollegiate curriculum and Fellowship opportunities. Moving forwards she is working with industry to provide skills courses to fill the training gaps left by COVID-19 measures, and sits on the executive committee of Roux Group to ensure bariatric content across the spectrum of Upper GI surgery educational events.

Roxanna is also a staunch advocate of gender equity and ethnic diversity in surgery, and continues to campaign for equal representation and opportunities in all training and society endeavours.

Roxanna is always happy to be contacted by BOMSS trainees to discuss ideas or concerns about training and what they would like the society to offer. Please contact her at trainees@bomss.org or on Twitter @RoxannaZakeri.

Dee Wainwright

BOMSS Patient Safety Committee Co-Chair, BOMSS Council member
Advanced Laparoscopic Surgical Care Practitioner

Biography

Dee has worked as a qualified nurse for the past 41years both in the Armed Forces and NHS.

She qualified as a Surgical Care Practitioner whilst working at Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust in 2005 specialising in UGI & Bariatric Surgery.

Dee has a BSc hon in Clinical practice with a post graduate Msc module in Obesity management and is also an Associate Member of the Royal College of Surgeons.

Dee currently provides specialist surgical assistance in UGI and Bariatric surgery as well as providing gastric band adjustment clinics and pre and post operative phone support for Bariatric patients.

Dee is proud to have been voted onto the BOMSS Patient Safety Committee and the opportunity to help drive improvements in patient safety and improve patient outcomes.