Document Type
Article
Department
Community Health Sciences
Abstract
BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES:
Primary health care (PHC) physicians are foremost to confront childhood and adolescent obesity. Our objective was to evaluate PHC Physicians perspectives for managing overweight/obesity in children and adolescents.
METHODS:
PHC services from eight public hospitals in Riyadh participated. A self-administered tool maintaining anonymity evaluated facilitators and barriers for managing overweight/obese children and adolescent patients. Physicians who 'always' recommended weight management for an overweight / obese patient during past year, by involving patient, parents, and others were classified as having positive and appropriate practice.
RESULTS:
Of the 58 respondents, 51.7% had appropriate practices. Lack of patient motivation (82.2%), and parental involvement (70.7%) were the major barriers. Physicians with appropriate practices differed in perspectives from those with less appropriate practices by attending continued education forums (p<0.026), referring patients to sub-specialty (p< 0.041), clinical knowledge (p<0.039), convinced on interventions (p<0.017), low concern for precipitating eating disorders (p<0.019), comfortable in examining obese patients (p<0.020), and considered patient's readiness for weight change (p< 0.007).
CONCLUSION:
Efforts are needed to equip PHC physicians in managing overweight and obesity in Saudi children and adolescents.
Publication ( Name of Journal)
Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences
Recommended Citation
AlOtaibi, F. N.,
AlOtaibi, M.,
AlAnazi, S.,
Al-Gethami, H.,
AlAteeq, D.,
Mishiddi, R.,
Siddiqui, A. R.
(2017). Childhood and adolescent obesity: Primary Health Care Physicians’ perspectives from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences, 33(1), 100-105.
Available at:
https://ecommons.aku.edu/pakistan_fhs_mc_chs_chs/298
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.