Dr. Samantha Scholtz Imperial College London, West London Mental Health Trust, UK

Dr Samantha Scholtz is a consultant psychiatrist who specialises in the management of obesity and related disorders as well as the preparation of patients for metabolic surgery. She is employed by West London Mental Health NHS Trust and based at the Imperial Weight Centre, St Mary’s Hospital. She is also... read morethe R&D director for West London Mental Health NHS Trust. She completed her PhD at Imperial College London, at the MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, and was funded by the Welcome Trust Charity. Her research examines appetite and food reward changes in patients who have undergone bariatric surgery using functional magnetic resonance imaging. She has also published on psychological factors influencing bariatric surgery and the clinical management of bariatric patients. She sits on national advisory committees for obesity management in the UK and advocates against stigmatisation of patients with obesity and serious mental illness through promoting the improved dissemination of scientific knowledge about the neuroendocrine physiology and psychology regulating appetite and weight control. She has recently set up a special interest group for bariatric psychologists and psychiatrists.