School of Public Health and Health Systems, University of Waterloo.
Department of Communication, College of Arts and Sciences, University at Albany, State University of New York.
Health Commun. 2022 May;37(5):561-567. doi: 10.1080/10410236.2020.1857516. Epub 2020 Dec 14.
This study aimed to investigate how health professionals (HPs) communicate about weight with their patients. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 33 health professionals (7 family physicians, 13 nurse practitioners, and 13 dietitians) working in multidisciplinary healthcare settings in Canada. Thematic analysis revealed four main approaches used by HPs to communicate about weight: 1) Analyzing patient perspectives, 2) focusing on overall health rather than weight, 3) directly addressing the topic, and 4) avoiding the topic. The approach chosen was influenced by HPs' outlook on obesity; for example, those who believed obesity to be a chronic disease did not hesitate to communicate about weight. However, some HPs who reported having obesity mentioned avoiding the topic of weight with their patients and emphasized the importance of establishing a trusting relationship with patients before addressing the topic. The approach chosen by HPs also seemed to be influenced by patient receptiveness, level of readiness, and motivation. Weight communication can be sensitive and the approach used to begin the topic of weight may differ based on patient- and HP factors. Future clinical practice guidelines may benefit from shifting toward communicating about modifiable risk factors rather than weight.
本研究旨在探讨健康专业人员（HPs）如何与患者就体重问题进行沟通。对在加拿大多学科医疗保健环境中工作的 33 名健康专业人员（7 名家庭医生、13 名执业护士和 13 名营养师）进行了半结构化访谈。主题分析揭示了 HPs 沟通体重问题的四种主要方法：1）分析患者的观点，2）关注整体健康而非体重，3）直接处理该主题，4）回避该主题。选择的方法受到 HPs 对肥胖的看法的影响；例如，那些认为肥胖是一种慢性疾病的人毫不犹豫地就体重问题进行沟通。然而，一些报告患有肥胖症的 HPs 提到避免与患者讨论体重问题，并强调在解决该问题之前与患者建立信任关系的重要性。HPs 选择的方法似乎还受到患者接受程度、准备程度和动机的影响。体重沟通可能很敏感，并且根据患者和 HP 因素，开始体重话题的方法可能会有所不同。未来的临床实践指南可能会受益于转向沟通可改变的风险因素，而不是体重。
