Phone
07 5564 6501
Phone
07 5564 6501
MBBS BVSc (HONS) FRACS
LAPAROSCOPIC, GENERAL, WEIGHT LOSS & HEPATOBILIARY SURGEON
Dr Free is a Specialist Weight Loss Surgeon who is committed to improving the lifestyle and health of his patients. His philosophy is to tailor treatment specifically to his patients’ goals and health, as well as long-term commitment to his patients’ well-being.
Since completing his surgical training in 2010, Dr Free has focused the majority of his work on weight loss surgery and helping patients with their weight related problems. There is no doubt that weight loss surgery has dramatic effects on a person’s physical health, psychological health, quality of life, confidence and overall well-being.
Dr Free recognises the enormous long-term benefits of weight loss surgery and is committed to providing extremely safe and effective procedures with a goal to relieve the fears, anxiety and stigmatism of obesity in the community. He does this by being extremely active in the bariatric surgery community, incorporating ongoing life-long learning and teaching amongst his team and trainees.
Dr Free has performed thousands of weight loss procedures over his 15 years of practice, with the overwhelming majority of patients having fantastic results and wishing they had been through his service earlier. He is well respected by his colleagues and has subsequently become a regular contributor to Australian and International scientific community.
Dr Free trained as a surgeon through the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in Queensland and spent a further two fellowship years obtaining bariatric surgery specific subspecialist training in Sydney and Brisbane. Early in his career he pursued further international training, including spending part of his fellowship years learning from world renowned experts at the University Medical Centre of Vienna, and Bariatric Surgery units at the University College Hospital London, and Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth UK.
Despite being one of the most experienced bariatric surgeons in Australia, he continues to improve his skills and patient care by spending periods of time with prominent and highly experienced surgeons throughout the world, regularly bringing home a wealth of experience.
MEDICAL SCHOOL
FELLOWSHIPS
SUB-SPECIALTY FELLOWSHIPS
OTHER APPOINTMENTS
HOSPITAL APPOINTMENTS
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
Dr Free has been working regularly at the Gold Coast University Hospital since 2014 as part of the Hepatobiliary/Bariatric Surgical Unit. He is a very strong advocate for providing bariatric surgery to public patients, who can be extremely unwell due to obesity related comorbidities, and often the most in need for life saving bariatric procedures.
In recent years Dr Free has been working closely and regularly with the Executive team at GCUH to implement a public bariatric surgery program. It is hoped and anticipated that a more formal public bariatric surgery service will become available in the coming years. Currently, small numbers of bariatric procedures are performed locally at the public hospital, however usually in exceptional circumstances. The aim is to provide a formal service to the public offering around 200 weight loss procedures annually in a dedicated bariatric surgery unit.
Dr Free’s current bariatric team, including researchers, are in the process of publishing and presenting research evidence demonstrating effective results and safety of bariatric surgery procedures performed by training fellows (under close guidance and supervision of Dr Free) at the Gold Coast University Hospital.
Dr Free is extremely keen on sharing his knowledge and skills, he has subsequently become a regular invited speaker at Australian and international bariatric meetings including in Europe and the USA. Additionally, he is regularly a chairperson at bariatric scientific sessions and is often involved in panel discussions at bariatric surgical conferences.
Dr Free holds regular clinical immersion programs for bariatric surgeons throughout Australia, who visit his operating lists to observe and learn procedural skills, specifically including the SADI procedure, Robotic Surgical Techniques and Advanced Bariatric Surgery courses. He is an accredited experienced Specialist Bariatric Surgical proctor and is required to travel to various parts of Australia to train bariatric surgeons in particular techniques whilst they are learning. He also delivers formal robotic surgical skills training as part of the daVinci Robotic Surgery platform. Much of his teaching and advice to fellow surgeons includes perioperative methods to improve the patient experience and recovery.
Dr Free is a strong advocate for teaching and improving the quality of bariatric surgeons in Australia. He has an ongoing role of overseeing trainee fellow surgeons on their pathway to develop their careers in specialist bariatric surgery. He regularly volunteers his time at annual trainees’ day learning workshops, and various local bariatric trainee and interest group meetings. He continues ongoing relationships with his trainees, providing an active mentoring role to his previous fellow trainees who regularly seek his opinions and support. Subsequently, Dr Free often travels to assist surgical colleagues who are planning very difficult complicated procedures.
Research and advancement of the scientific literature is important to improve results and outcomes worldwide, and Dr Free and his team including trainees, and his research scientist, constantly have several research projects ongoing. He has been a supervisor for trainees in obtaining their Masters of Surgical Research degrees. The results of his teams’ research are often presented at national and international surgical conferences.
Dr Free is an advocate and an active contributor to the Monash University Bariatric Surgery Registry. The primary aim of the Registry is to measure outcomes for patients undergoing bariatric surgery throughout Australia, to ensure quality and safety of procedures and devices.
2023 – International Federation for Surgery of Obesity – Naples – Italy – Research Presentation “Comparison of Bariatric surgery outcomes of Single Anastomosis Duodeno-ileostomy (SADI) vs Sleeve Duodeno-jejunal bypass (SDJB) vs Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) alone. A retrospective study”
2023 – American Society of Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery International Conference – Las Vegas – USA – Research Presentation – “Comparison of Bariatric surgery outcomes of Single Anastomosis Duodeno-ileostomy (SADI) vs Sleeve Duodeno-jejunal bypass (SDJB) vs Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) alone. A retrospective study”
2023 – Australia & New Zealand Metabolic & Obesity Surgery Society – Christchurch – NZ – Invited Speaker “Technical Tips for Entero-enterostomy in gastric bypass”. Research presentations -“Safety of sleeve gastrectomy performed by training surgeons”, “Outcomes in gastric bypass surgery performed by training surgeons: results from an Australian Bariatric Unit”
2023 – International Society of Robotic Surgery Annual Conference – Invited Speaker – “Robotic Duodenal Switch & SADI: Approaches to Duodenal Dissection and Bowel”
2022 Auckland Bariatric Meeting – Invited international speaker – “Revisional Robotic Procedures in Bariatric Surgery”
2022 ANZMOSS Conference – Cairns – Invited Speaker – “Liver failure following Bariatric Surgery”
2022 ANZMOSS Conference – Cairns – Invited Speaker – Dietitians Section – “SADI Procedure and the Nutritional Evidence”
2022 June – Brisbane Bariatric Meeting – Invited Speaker – Evening Industry sponsored dinner meeting: “Robotic Bypass, SADI, & hiatus hernia repairs”
2022 – Australian Scientific Congress – Bariatric Section – Research Presentation “Comparison of Bariatric surgery outcomes of Single Anastomosis Duodeno-ileostomy (SADI) vs Sleeve Duodeno-jejunal bypass (SDJB) vs Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) alone. A retrospective study”
2022 – Australian Scientific Congress – Bariatric Section – Invited Speaker – “Why I Like the SADI”
2020 Dec – Sydney Upper Gastrointestinal Surgical Society (SUGSS) – invited speaker – “Gastric Bypass vs Loop Duodenal Switch in revision and primary surgery”
2020 Oct – Singapore Obesity, Bariatric & Endocrine Society – invited international speaker – “Single Anastomosis Duodeno-Ileostomy Current Best Practices & Challenges”
2020 – Brisbane Bariatric society journal club presentation – “SADI vs Bypass – Update on “SADISLEEVE” Randomised Controlled Trial”
2020 Nov – daVinci Robotic Applications in Bariatric Surgery, International web conference – invited presenter – “Robotic Gastric Procedures; How I learned and my experiences”
2019 SUGSS – invited speaker – “Single Anastomosis Duodenoileostomy – What I do, success and speed bumps in introducing SADI into my practice”
2019 Auckland Bariatric Meeting – Invited international speaker – “SADI procedure -Why I do it & How”
2018 – Annual Scientific Congress, Royal Australasian College Surgeons, (ASC) – invited speaker “SADI procedure – Video presentations”
2018 ANZMOSS meeting – invited speaker – multiple presentations: “Operative management of Sleeve Gastrectomy leaks”, “SADI procedure- an overview, short term complications and operative technique”, “Intraoperative disasters and how to resolve”
2018 Auckland Bariatric meeting – invited international speaker – “Difficult Decisions in Bariatric Surgery”
2018 – Sydney Upper Gastrointestinal Surgical Society – invited speaker “SADI procedure following Sleeve Gastrectomy”
2017 ANZMOSS Meeting – Invited speaker – “Revision for poor weight loss, Do we need to be more aggressive?”
2017 Brisbane Bariatric Society – presentation – “Single Anastomosis Bariatric Procedures – Review of the Literature”
2017 – Adelaide Australian Scientific Congress – Bariatric Section – invited speaker “SADI procedure, Very Low short-term complications”
2017 – Adelaide Australian Scientific Congress – Bariatric Section – invited speaker “Sleeve Revision to SADI procedure”
2016 – Australian Scientific Congress – Bariatric Section – Bariatric Surgery Section Conference Convener
invited speaker “The Single Anastomosis Duodenoileostomy Procedure – What it is, who benefits and recent experience.”
2015 – Australian Scientific Congress – Bariatric Section – invited speaker “Acute Management of Leaks & Salvage Surgery after Sleeve Gastrectomy”
2015 – OSSANZ conference – Fellowship Trainees Training day – invited speaker & teacher “Management of Intraoperative Problems with Gastric Bypass and Sleeve Gastrectomy”
2015 – Gold Coast Medical Association – Annual conference – invited speaker “Obesity as a Disease – Worldwide Update and Future Trends in Weight Loss Surgery”
2014 – CTEC – invited speaker & trainer; “How I Learned the Gastric Bypass Procedure”
“Intra-operative Adverse Events in Gastric Bypass Surgery”
“Gastric Bypass as a Salvage to Sleeve Gastrectomy in acute and chronic complications”
2014 – B Meeting Auckland – Invited Speaker – Auckland NZ, 3rd Bledisloe Bariatric Symposium; “Gastric bypass as a salvage to sleeve gastrectomy complications”
2014 & 2013 – CTEC – Facilitator, trainer & lecturer at Advanced Bariatric & Roux-en-Y Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery course – University of Western Australia CTEC – Clinical Training & Evaluation Centre (November 2013 & 2014)
“Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass – operative steps and technique”
“How I Learned how to do a gastric bypass – perspective from bariatric training fellowship”
“Intraoperative problems in gastric bypass and how to resolve”
“Gastric Bypass as a salvage procedure for sleeve gastrectomy”
“Post-operative management of gastric bypass patients”
2013 – Victorian Bariatric Interest Surgical Group – Invited Speaker: Managing the complicated band – revisional bypass experience.
2013 – Brisbane Bariatric Surgical club meeting – Invited Speaker; Sleeve gastrectomy conversion to gastric bypass in the acute setting.
2013 – OSSANZ conference – invited speaker – “Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass upfront or delayed following failed laparoscopic adjustable gastric band”
“Fixed ring on the gastric bypass pouch: A technique when converting failed LAGB to RYGB”
“Sleeve to Bypass Early outcomes & technical considerations for conversion of sleeve gastrectomy to gastric bypass”
At Surgery Gold Coast our values are to provide you with friendly service and an efficient pathway through your surgical journey. We work hard to make your experience as simple as possible.
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07 5564 6501
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