Primary care weight management counseling: physician and patient perspectives.
This paper examines the use of the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services for behavioral counseling for overweight patients in the primary care setting.


METHODS
Study 1 assessed counseling practices of family physicians with a 13-item physician questionnaire based on the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services. Study 2 assessed the perception of weight loss recommendations made to obese primary care patients attending a family practice clinic.


RESULTS
46% of the family physicians responded. The most common referrals were made to dieticians and exercise programs. The patient survey indicated that 80.3% had received weight loss recommendations, and 68.9% had received counseling on diet change or exercise.


CONCLUSIONS
This study found adequate rates of compliance with the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services. However, these results have highlighted the need to expand the guidelines to counsel patients more specifically with regard to weight loss recommendations and to focus on improving patient compliance and motivation.
Martin
Pamela Davis
PD
Division of Primary Care Studies, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, USA.
Rhode
Paula C
PC
Howe
John T
JT
Brantley
Phillip J
PJ
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003376:Counseling / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005194:Family Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008145:Louisiana; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D015431:Weight Loss