| dc.description.abstract | Obesity has become a public health crisis with the prevalence of pediatric obesity being one in five children in the United States. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and widening social disparities are driving obesity rates up. Preventing obesity in children should be priority but despite our society’s best efforts, children are crossing the BMI threshold and entering an obese BMI range. Advances in medication options are showing promising results for adolescents with obesity when combined with a healthy diet and exercise. Additionally, surgical options are proving to be safe and sustainable options for children 14 years and older.
Clinicians who care for adolescents have received minimal education on treatment guidelines for adolescents with severe obesity. This evidence-based practice improvement project sought to find out if providing education on assessment and treatment of obesity in adolescents and providing a sample of clinical practice guidelines to reflect the 2023 American Academy of Pediatrics practice guidelines would adequately provide knowledge to increase clinician confidence in treating adolescents with obesity. The primary goal of this project was to increase the knowledge of clinicians about effective weight loss treatments for adolescents, including bariatric surgery, increase clinician confidence in treating adolescents with obesity, and decrease weight bias barriers. An education session was presented which comprised of education on reducing weight bias perceptions, treating pediatric obesity with lifestyle changes and medications, and when to refer to bariatric surgery. Of the 40 healthcare providers that attended the education, five clinicians filled out the pre- and post-survey. The surveys included six questions asking about confidence in discussing, assessing, and treating obesity in adolescents, the Beliefs About Obese Persons tool, and three questions to assess the quality and effectiveness of the education as a whole. The education was found to increase clinician’s confidence in bringing up the subject of obesity, formulating a treatment plan, and using professional language. More education is needed to adequately educate clinicians on when an adolescent should be referred to the bariatric surgery clinic. Additionally, the education decreased the participants’ belief that an individual is solely responsible for their obesity. | en_US |
