Dutch General Practitioners' weight management policy for overweight and obese patients.

ABSTRACT:

Background

General practitioners (GPs) can play an important role in both the prevention and management of overweight and obesity. Current general practice guidelines in the Netherlands allow room for GPs to execute their own weight management policy.

Objective

To examine GPs' current weight management policy and the factors associated with this policy.

Methods

800 Dutch GPs were asked to complete a questionnaire in December 2012. The questionnaire items were based on the Dutch Obesity Standard for GPs. The data were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression analyses in 2013.

Results

In total, 307 GPs (39.0%) responded. Most respondents (82.9%) considered weight management as part of their responsibility for providing care. GPs aged <48 years discussed weight less frequent. Next, weight is less frequently discussed with patients without weight-related comorbidities or with moderately overweight patients compared to obese patients. On average, 47.7% of the GPs reported to refer obese patients to a weight management professional, preferably a dietitian (98.3%). GPs with a BMI ? 25 kg/m(2) were less likely to refer obese patients. In addition, GPs who had frequent contact with a dietitian were more likely to refer obese patients.

Conclusions

In the context of General Practice and preventive medicine, GPs' discussion of weight and the variety of obesity-determinants with their moderately overweight patients deserves more attention, especially from younger GPs. Strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration between GPs and dietitians could increase the referral percentage for dietary treatment.

SUBMITTER: Kloek CJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4472618 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature