About Your Team

Dr. Helbling is a board certified general surgeon practicing in Bismarck, North Dakota since 2008. He specializes in General, Bariatric, and Trauma surgery. He is also the Director of Bariatric surgery at Brightside Surgery and Weight Loss Center, Brightside Surgical and CHI St. Alexius Bismarck.

He completed a general surgery residency in 2008 at Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies, Michigan State University. Prior to this he Graduated from University of North Dakota Medical School in 2003.

He is a native of North Dakota, growing up in Mandan, ND and graduated from Mandan High School in 1994.

Kristen Scholl is a Certified Physician Assistant at Brightside Surgery and Weight Loss Center. Originally from Bowman, ND, she has been working alongside Dr. Helbling both in the operating room and the clinic since 2013. She is also the primary provider for Brightside Surgery and Weight Loss Center’s Achieve Program. Prior to her work as a Physician Assistant, Kristen worked as a Certified Surgical Technologist.

Paula Lubale is a Registered Nurse and the Bariatric Care Coordinator at Brightside Surgery and Weight Loss Center. Originally from St. James, MN, she has been working with Dr. Helbling and his team since 2015. She has been a Registered Nurse since 2009. Prior to her work in bariatric nursing, she worked in emergency, medical/surgical, family practice and internal medicine.

Lacey Parson is a Licensed Practical Nurse at Brightside Surgery and Weight Loss Center. Lacey is a native of Bismarck, ND. She is the clinic nurse for Brandon Helbling, MD and Kristen Scholl, PA-C and has worked with the team since 2009. Prior to her work in bariatrics, she was an LPN at an assisted living facility.

Jenny Schmidt is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator at Brightside Surgery and Weight Loss Center. Jenny was born and raised in Langdon, ND and has been working with Dr. Brandon Helbling since 2016. Along with her extensive nutrition expertise for both surgical and non-surgical weight management, Jenny has prior experience working in long term care and inpatient hospital settings.