This post is part of my LinkedIn series: Wow! How? Health.
Four in ten U.S. adults have obesity, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. That includes 9% of U.S. adults with severe obesity, which is defined as having a body mass index over 40.
Shame and stigma compound their health problems. “You wear your disease,” says Elina Onitskansky, founder and CEO of Ilant Health. “You go out in public settings and people give you unsolicited advice. Your doctor makes assumptions about you.” She knows this challenge well, having lived with obesity herself and founded a company that offers high-quality, holistic care for people of size seeking a path to health and wellbeing.
Because obesity has historically been treated as a choice not a disease, many employers and health care organizations do not realize the prevalence in their population, so Ilant uses a proprietary algorithm to identify where the most impact is possible.
Obesity is undertreated for another reason: providing the right care for a complex condition with multiple physical and mental health comorbidities is challenging. Ilant offers holistic care that is designed to help individuals however they need it (nutritional, pharmacological, and behavior change support, in addition to surgical options). Since the CEO and many of the employees have lived experience, they are able to build trust, and the team reviews every communication to be sure there is not a hint of shame or judgment.
As one member (what Ilant calls their customers) said, in gratitude, “You have treated me like a human, not a problem to be solved.”
When I asked Onitskansky if she identifies with the Rebel Health archetypes, she said yes:
Seeker: As an adolescent and young adult, she hunted for information, trying every diet and weight loss treatment (as many of Ilant’s members do, too). Spoiler: Grapefruit is not the answer.
Networker: She believes deeply in community and care-based support. Members feel dismissed by clinicians and seek out other people like themselves for support. Ilant is building peer-led communities on their platform to meet this need.
Solver: When she sees a system that doesn’t work, she can’t rest until she figures out how to improve it. She uses her experience working at health plans to evaluate and build value-based care solutions.
Champion: She has stepped into her power and created a platform for change.
All her life, people made assumptions about Onitskansky based on her size, assuming she lacked discipline or motivation. That fuels her passion to create a safe place for people who are otherwise scared to speak and to guide the health care system toward helping them (and saving money). Ilant is a survivor-led health care company that is making a difference in people’s lives.
I maintain a list of patient-, survivor-, and caregiver-led companies and organizations. If you know of one I should add, please drop the name and/or a link in the comments!
Image: I love how Ilant Health’s website displays this image of people of size engaging in exercise and other activities, with joy.
Inspiring read! Ilant Health’s holistic, shame-free approach to obesity care is exactly what’s needed to address a complex condition with both physical and mental health aspects. I love how lived experience informs their model, building trust and community for people often overlooked by traditional healthcare. A great example of patient-centered innovation!