Treating Childhood Obesity: Building and Evaluating Evidence-Based Models of Integrated Care.

Childhood obesity is a complex chronic condition, such that effective management requires intensive programming and sustained access to treatment. Integrated care models are useful for designing and delivering services to treat children with overweight or obesity. For this narrative mini-review, we searched PubMed (January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2024) using broad terms in 3 categories-care models, condition of interest (obesity), and population of interest (children/youth). This resulted in identification of 2 foundational models, the Chronic Care Model (CCM) and the Patient/Family-Centered Medical Home (PFCMH), which distinguish key elements of integrated care for childhood obesity (treatment with self-management support, team-based care, child/family activation and engagement, collaborative community linkages, and care coordination) and considerations for implementing such models (accessibility to care, virtual care, interprofessional education, and information systems and clinical decision support). Drawing upon the CCM and PFCMH, we designed an integrated care model with the child/family at the center and coordinated wraparound services pertaining to sectors influencing child health (health care, community, and family home). We concluded by noting the need to further study, adapt, scale, and fund strategies for implementing integrated care models and underscoring the importance of relevant outcome measures to drive ongoing quality improvement and sustainability.