About Us

Robin Blackstone, MD
Surgeon and Director, Scottsdale Bariatric Center
Medical Director, Scottsdale Healthcare Bariatric Program
Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Blackstone is one of the few women surgeons in the world specializing in the Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass. With her practice focused entirely on Weight Loss Surgery, she is committed to providing patients with the very best care possible.

From a fourth generation Arizona family, Dr. Blackstone grew up in the Grand Canyon National Park. She attended the University of Arizona in Tucson after high school and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy. After being accepted as a medical student at the University of Texas in San Antonio, she graduated and received her Doctor of Medicine in 1988. Dr. Blackstone then completed her General Surgery residency at the University of Colorado graduating in 1993 as a General Surgeon specializing in the leading-edge field of Advanced Laparoscopic surgery.

In 1996, Dr. Blackstone returned to Arizona and established her private practice in Scottsdale - specializing in Advanced Laparoscopic General Surgery and Surgical Oncology. Dr. Blackstone first became interested in Gastric Bypass surgery for the morbidly obese after a close family member had the surgery in 1999. Fascinated by a very successful and obviously life-changing outcomes she established a medical model for obesity treatment that spans the continuum of disease and includes medical and surgical weight loss. Scottsdale Bariatric Center was one of the first Centers in the United States to be recognized as a Center of Excellence by Caesar's Entertainment Group through a competitive process based on structure, process and outcomes.

In 2004, Dr. Blackstone was named to the American College of Surgeons National Faculty in Bariatric Surgery and serves on the Surgical Review Corporation Review Committee for National Centers of Excellence and as a founding Board Member of the Obesity Action Coalition. Dr. Blackstone has been an outspoken advocate of outcome based medical practice. The Scottsdale Bariatric Center was recently named as an American Society of Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence.

Kurt Sprunger, MD
Surgeon, Scottsdale Bariatric Center

Hello, I am Dr. Kurt Sprunger. I am originally from Indianapolis, Indiana. I earned undergraduate and medical degrees from Indiana University. After completing my residency in general surgery at the University of Iowa in 1989, I was a member of a general surgery practice in Indiana for 18 years before coming to Scottsdale.

During my career, I have maintained experience in all aspects of general surgery including thyroid, breast and gastrointestinal surgery. However, my keenest interest has been to embrace the tremendous benefits of advanced laparoscopy for virtually all abdominal operations, including weight loss surgery. From 2005 until April 2007, I was Director of the Bariatric and Nutritional Counseling Center in Indiana.

I joined the Scottsdale Bariatric Center team in May 2008. I consider weight loss surgery to be one of the most beneficial and rewarding operations a surgeon can perform. The opportunity to help people cure or significantly improve their weight-related medical conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, or sleep apnea, as well as adding years to their lives is tremendously fulfilling.

I have great admiration for our patient who struggle with obesity and through surgery, embark on a journey to improved health.

Evangelos Chandanos, MD, PhD
Fellow, Scottsdale Bariatric Center

Evangelos Chandanos was born in Athens, Greece. He moved to Stockholm, Sweden to study medicine and he graduated from the Medical School of Karolinska Institutet (KI) in 1998. Dr Chandanos completed his 21-months long internship in 2000 and became an attending in the Department of General Surgery at the Karolinska University Hospital in 2006. Parallel with his residency he started research and in 2008 he defended his thesis at KI.

Since Februay 2009, he has been a member of the team at Scottsdale Bariatric Center for a fellowship in Laparoscopic Bariatric Surgery.

Katherine Emershad, MD
Internal Medicine

Katherine Emershad is a physician who specializes in medical weight loss. She received her board certification from the American Board of Bariatric Medicine and is currently a Diplomat with the American Society of Bariatric Physicians.

Dr. Emershad attended school at the University of Southern California and did her residency at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angles.

She has extensive experience working with all types of weight loss patients both surgical and non-surgical. She works with many patients in the pre-operative and post-operative periods.

Her interests in weight loss stem from her personal struggle with weight loss as well as her concern that this important health issue is not being adequately addressed by the medical community.

When asked about her philosophy, Dr. Emershad states: "I try to move people beyond the latest fad or gimmick that seems to plague the weight loss industry. I like to work with each individual to develop a lifetime program and get them away from the vicious circle of yo-yo dieting."

Buddy Messer, Psy. D
Psychologist

Dr. Messer has lived many places, but considers himself a Texan. He joined the team at Scottsdale Bariatric in the fall of 2004. Dr. Messer received his Bachelors in Psychology from Biola University in Southern California, and his Masters and Doctoral degrees from Rosemead School of Psychology which is also in Southern, California. He completed his doctoral internship at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. While at Texas Tech, Dr. Messer was exposed to working with bariatric and eating disordered clients and developed a strong passion for these groups of people. Dr. Messer then moved to Arizona and completed his post-doctoral residence at a world renowned eating disorder treatment center. After his post-doctoral experience he began a private practice with a large portion of his practice dedicated to bariatric and eating disordered clients.

Melissa Davis, NP
Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Nurse Specialist, RN First Assistant

Melissa Davis is a board certified nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, and RN first assistant. She received her Bachelor of Science in nursing from Seton Hall University; her Master’s of Science in nursing from the University of Phoenix, and her post-master’s nurse practitioner certificate from Saint Louis University. She is also certified in perioperative nursing.

As a member of the SBC team for over 7 years, she has assisted in over 3000 cases in the operating room and has extensive experience in managing surgical weight loss patients. She also follows up with patients in the hospital, sees patients in the office and in support group, and teaches pre and post-operative classes. She is an active member of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) RN Certification Committee, and is one of only a few members who have had the privilege of developing and implementing the first certification exam for bariatric nurses. Her article regarding the RN certification exam process was published in the Bariatric Times and she continues to serve on this very important committee. Melissa is also a member of the National Association for Bariatric Nurses (NABN), American Nurses Association (ANA), Arizona Nurses Association (AzNA), and Association of periOperating Room nurses (AORN), and has been trained in both the Allergan Lap-Band® and the Johnson & Johnson Realize® adjustable gastric bands.

Kelly Polak, NP
Nurse Practitioner

Kelly Polak is a Family Nurse Practitioner on the Bariatric unit at Scottsdale Healthcare. In the beginning of her career, she worked as a Registered Nurse at Maryvale and Desert Samaritan hospitals. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Grand Canyon College in 1987. In 2003 she received both her Master of Science in Nursing and Nurse Practitioner Certificate from the University of Phoenix.

In 1994, she began her tenure with Scottsdale Healthcare, where she was a labor nurse and soon after a nursing supervisor in Women’s and Children’s Services. Kelly joined the bariatric team as a Nurse Practitioner in 2004 and has worked closely with Dr. Blackstone and other providers in direct patient care. She functions as a clinical liaison between the staff at Scottsdale Healthcare and Scottsdale Bariatric Center. Kelly teaches the pre-operative class for new patients awaiting surgery. She also teaches the Bariatric Nurse review and Bariatric patient awareness classes for Scottsdale Healthcare staff. Kelly is a highly experienced professional known for her compassion and dedication for excellence in patient satisfaction. She currently lives in Avondale with her husband and 2 children.

Cassie Truran
Bariatric Dietician

Cassie Truran received her Bachelor's degree in Nutrition from Arizona State University. She completed a supervised dietetic internship at Iowa State University. During her internship, she worked closely with weight loss surgery and discovered a tremendous passion for counseling weight loss surgery patients. After completing her internship, she received a Certificate of Training in Weight Management through the American Dietetic Association.

Mrs. Truran continues to use her expertise in weight management by providing individual and group nutrition counseling and support to every patient at Scottsdale Bariatric Center.

Samantha Easterly, RD
Registered Dietitian

Samantha Easterly received her Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition from Arizona State University. She completed a supervised dietetic internship program through the Maricopa County Department of Public Health. After completing her internship, she received her Certificate of Training in Adult and Childhood Weight Management through the American Dietetic Association.

Throughout the years, Samantha has counseled hundreds of children and adults and has found that she strongly desires to work with those who are ready to work hard and make positive changes to improve their overall quality of life.

Mrs. Easterly currently provides individual and group nutrition counseling to patients of Scottsdale Bariatric Center and continues to work individually with children and adolescents through Scottsdale Healthcare.