Background:
General Practitioners and Practice Nurses are well positioned to play a vital role in addressing Australia’s obesity epidemic. However, many report low confidence when discussing or advising patients about weight management.
Training sessions that LiveLighter offers to GP’s and Practice Nurses entitled “Talking to Patients about Weight” were evaluated. LiveLighter also examined perceptions of those who are overweight or obese about discussing their weight with health professionals.
Key findings from the survey and feedback from training are discussed.
Methods:
Evaluation from LiveLighter one day face-to-face training sessions to GP’s and Practice Nurses was analysed over a twelve month period. LiveLighter commissioned the Heart Foundation to conduct an online survey on 2,012 Australian adults aged 25-49 years.
Results:
Doctors (34%) were the second most important source of information about weight and diet. Most people (77%) reported they felt either very comfortable or comfortable about speaking to a health professional about their weight.
Only 30% of survey participants report being advised by a health professional that they are overweight or should lose weight. Of those advised to lose weight 86% people acted on it.
Of the professionals who attended the LiveLighter training sessions 98% found it relevant to their work. Valued aspects of training were; Motivational Interviewing, The 5A’s framework and LiveLighter resources and tools. Barriers to incorporating the training into their routine were lack of time and the need for practice.
Conclusion:
This survey demonstrated the majority of respondents felt comfortable talking to a health professional about their weight and were highly likely to act on it if advised. GP’s and Practice Nurses report low confidence when talking to patients about their weight. Training for GP's and Practice Nurses can improve confidence in this area.