Primary Care Providers Welcome Smartphone Apps That Assist in Pediatric Weight Management

2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (6) ◽  
pp. 665-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine B. SanGiovanni ◽  
Kristen Morella ◽  
James Russell Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Weight Management ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Obese Patients ◽  
Smartphone Apps ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Weight Management Counseling ◽  
Pediatric Weight Management ◽  
Pediatric Providers

Primary care providers (PCPs) have few resources to manage their overweight/obese patients. The purpose of study was to determine if technological resources, such as smartphone apps, may be useful for weight management counseling. PCPs were surveyed about their current use of resources for obesity management and whether smartphone apps would be helpful. Seventy-four PCPs completed the survey. Only 15% currently referred patients to smartphone apps at least sometimes or more often. When asked about features of apps, 66% were not aware of apps with interactive healthy eating games, yet if aware, 45% reported they would refer patients. Providers reported a greater likelihood of being more effective using an app compared with their current ability to manage overweight/obesity, 3.19 versus 2.85, P < .01. The majority of pediatric providers surveyed do not provide technological resources for their overweight/obese patients; yet, they appear interested in using smartphone apps as a resource.

scholarly journals First, Do No Harm: Understanding Primary Care Providers’ Perception of Risks Associated With Discussing Weight With Pediatric Patients

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 2333794X2110409
Author(s):  
Katie A. Loth ◽  
Jocelyn Lebow ◽  
Marc James Abrigo Uy ◽  
Samantha M. Ngaw ◽  
Dianne Neumark-Sztainer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Pediatric Patients ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Perceived Risks ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Pediatric Weight Management

Many health care providers struggle with if- and how-to discuss weight with their pediatric patients. This study used one-on-one interviews with primary care providers (n = 20) to better understand their: (1) perception of risks associated with talking about weight with pediatric patients, (2) commitment to adhering to best practices of pediatric weight management, and (3) approaches to mitigate perceived risks. Providers felt concerned that discussing weight with children during clinic visits may have unintended negative impacts. Despite perceived risks, providers continued regular BMI screening and weight-focused conversations, but took care with regard to language and approach with the goal of mitigating perceived risks. Findings suggest that pediatric primary care providers perceive that engaging in weight-related discussions with their patients has the potential to lead to negative, unintended consequences. Future research is needed to understand if weight-focused conversations should be avoided altogether or if there are approaches that can effectively mitigate risks.

scholarly journals Identifying Opportunities for Advancing Weight Management in Primary Care

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 215013271987087 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivana T. Croghan ◽  
Jon O. Ebbert ◽  
Jane W. Njeru ◽  
Tamim I. Rajjo ◽  
Brian A. Lynch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Weight Management ◽  
Clinical Care ◽  
Confidence Score ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Average Score ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Educational Training ◽  
Major Health Problem

Objective: Much has been written about the patients’ perspective concerning weight management in health care. The purpose of this survey study was to assess perspectives of primary care providers (PCPs) and nurses toward patient weight management and identify possible areas of growth. Patients and Methods: We emailed a weight management–focused survey to 674 eligible participants (437 [64.8%] nurses and 237 [35.2%] PCPs) located in 5 outpatient primary care clinics. The survey focused on opportunities, practices, knowledge, confidence, attitudes, and beliefs. A total of 219 surveys were returned (137 [62.6%] from nurses and 82 [34.4%] from PCPs). Results: Among 219 responders, 85.8% were female and 93.6% were white non-Hispanic. In this study, PCPs and nurses believed obesity to be a major health problem. While PCPs felt more equipped than nurses to address weight management ( P < .001) and reported receiving more training than nurses (50.0% vs 17.6%, respectively), both felt the need for more training on obesity (73.8% and 79.4%, respectively). Although, PCPs also spent more patient contact time providing weight management services versus nurses ( P < .001), the opportunity/practices score was lower for PCPs than nurses (−0.35 ± 0.44 vs −0.17 ± 0.41, P < .001) with PCPs more likely to say they lacked the time to discuss weight and they worried it would cause a poor patient-PCP relationship. The knowledge/confidence score also differed significantly between the groups, with nurses feeling less equipped to deal with weight management issues than PCPs (−0.42 ± 0.43 vs −0.03 ± 0.55, P < .001). Neither group seemed very confident, with those in the PCP group only answering with an average score of neutral. Conclusion: By asking nurses and PCP general questions about experiences, attitudes, knowledge, and opinions concerning weight management in clinical care, this survey has identified areas for growth in obesity management. Both PCPs and nurses would benefit from additional educational training on weight management.

Description, utilisation and results from a telehealth primary care weight management intervention for adults with obesity in South Carolina

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 28-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua D Brown ◽  
Sarah Hales ◽  
T Ed Evans ◽  
Tonya Turner ◽  
David O Sword ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
South Carolina ◽  
Weight Management ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Access To Treatment ◽  
Financial Barriers ◽  
Rural Primary Care

Introduction In the US, obesity rates are higher in rural areas than in urban areas. Rural access to treatment of obesity is limited by a lack of qualified clinicians and by transportation and financial barriers. We describe a telemedicine weight management programme, Wellness Connect, developed through a partnership of academic clinicians and rural primary care providers in South Carolina, and present utilisation and weight outcomes from seven patient cohorts. Methods Eight bi-weekly sessions were provided via telemedicine videoconferencing for groups of patients at these rural primary care clinics. Protocol-based sessions were led by registered dietitians, exercise physiologists and clinical psychologists at a central urban location. Results Of 138 patients who started the programme, 62% ( N = 86) of patients met the criteria for completion. Completers lost an average of 3.5% (standard deviation (SD) = 3.9%) body weight, which was statistically significant ( p < .001) and corresponded with an average loss of 3.8 kg (SD = 4.5 kg). There were no differences in weight change among clinics ( p = .972). Overall, patients and providers reported satisfaction with the programme and identified several challenges to sustainability. Discussion The use of innovative telemedicine interventions continues to be necessary to alleviate barriers to accessing evidence-based services to reduce chronic diseases and decrease obesity rates among rural populations.

scholarly journals Obesity Management Education Needs Among General Internists: A Survey

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 215013272110132
Author(s):  
Sanjeev Nanda ◽  
Jayanth Adusumalli ◽  
Ryan T. Hurt ◽  
Karthik Ghosh ◽  
Karen M. Fischer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Weight Management ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Medical Training ◽  
Management Training ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Obese Patients ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
General Internal

Objective The purpose of this study was to determine self-reported knowledge, attitudes, prior experience, and perceived needs for the management of overweight and obese patients within a General Internal Medicine Practice. Patients and Methods An emailed cross-sectional survey was sent between June 20, 2019 and September 12, 2019 to 194 healthcare workers (93 primary care providers (PCPs) and 101 nurses) which focused on management of patients with weight issues. Results In total, 80 of the eligible 194 participants completed the survey (nurses = 42, PCPs = 38). Up to 87% were white, 74.7% female (74.7%). Most of the responders were either in the age group of 30’s (30%) or 50’s (30%). Among the responders, 48.8% reported some type of specialty training in weight management since their medical training with lectures being the most common form of training (36%). When asked about their interest in either weight management training or strategies to initiate weight conversations, 79% of the respondents reported an interest in education on weight management or strategies to initiate weight conversations, while 65.8% indicated they would be interested in both topics. Conclusion Our study suggests that healthcare workers have a self-reported need for further training in management of overweight and obese patients, irrespective of previous training in this area.

scholarly journals Successful childhood obesity management in primary care in Canada: what are the odds?

PeerJ ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. e1327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Kuhle ◽  
Rachel Doucette ◽  
Helena Piccinini-Vallis ◽  
Sara F.L. Kirk
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Childhood Obesity ◽  
Secondary Prevention ◽  
Weight Management ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Canadian Community Health Survey ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Obesity Management

Background.The management of a child presenting with obesity in a primary care setting can be viewed as a multi-step behavioral process with many perceived and actual barriers for families and primary care providers. In order to achieve the goal of behavior change and, ultimately, clinically meaningful weight management outcomes in a child who is considered obese, all steps in this process should ideally be completed. We sought to review the evidence for completing each step, and to estimate the population effect of secondary prevention of childhood obesity in Canada.Methods.Data from the 2009/2010 Canadian Community Health Survey and from a review of the literature were used to estimate the probabilities for completion of each step. A flow chart based on these probabilities was used to determine the proportion of children with obesity that would undergo and achieve clinically meaningful weight management outcomes each year in Canada.Results.We estimated that the probability of a child in Canada who presents with obesity achieving clinically meaningful weight management outcomes through secondary prevention in primary care is around 0.6% per year, with a range from 0.01% to 7.2% per year. The lack of accessible and effective weight management programs appeared to be the most important bottleneck in the process.Conclusions.In order to make progress towards supporting effective pediatric obesity management, efforts should focus on population-based primary prevention and a systems approach to change our obesogenic society, alongside the allocation of resources toward weight management approaches that are comprehensively offered, equitably distributed and robustly evaluated.

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