Recent statistics on climbing obesity rates fly in the face of public health efforts and advertising campaigns that promote fitness and health-conscious diets. But much of
the diet information reported in the media is confusing. The well-publicized but controversial approaches of Dr. Robert Atkins' high-protein diet plan and Dr. Dean Ornish's low-
fat diet plan are recent cases in point. Those who are overweight or obese are starving for credible information about how to best adopt healthier eating habits and lifestyles - a
void hospitals are well positioned to fill.
While there are no simple solutions to the nation's escalating obesity and overweight dilemmas, hospitals can and should do more to target these patients with weight-loss
initiatives. The biggest untapped opportunity exists in providing more aggressive physician counseling on obesity that direct patients to medically monitored weight management
programs and diets. It's also important for hospitals to offer a full range of diet programs that address those who are moderately overweight as well as obese.
Although obesity accounts for nearly 300,000 deaths annually, physicians are not sufficiently trained on how to counsel patients who have the chronic disease.
Physician guidance is critical in achieving the kind of behavior modification necessary for obese patients to lose weight, says Sharon Klaiman, senior marketing communications
specialist at Health Management Resources (HMR), a weight management firm that works with more than 400 healthcare organizations nationwide. Physician referrals also achieve the
highest rates of compliance for patients involved with weight management, proving to be significantly more effective than advertising and PR efforts, says Dr. James Anderson,
professor of medical and clinical nutrition and director of the University of Kentucky's (UK) weight management programs. Physician referrals and patient recommendations account
for 80% of UK's weight management participants, while advertising and PR account for 7% and 2%, respectively.
Fighting the Weight War
There are a few other compelling reasons hospitals have not played a more active role in battling obesity:
- Obesity is not widely viewed as a chronic disease like diabetes or cancer.
- Most insurers do not cover weight management for obesity.
- There is no consensus on how hospitals can provide coordinated care programs to address obesity.
A program launched last month is chipping away at these barriers. The initiative, the Centers for Obesity Research and Education (CORE), uses a combination of workshops, case
studies and research to train physicians on how to assess and recommend customized treatment options for obese patients. The training includes interactive tactics like video role-
playing between physicians and wearing an empathy suit that adds 40 pounds to a person's normal body weight.
Although the program's initial focus is clinical, Dr. James Hill, CORE's principal and professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, is eager to
get input from healthcare administrators and communicators on developing long-term solutions for obesity. "The problem with how this country treats obesity is that the solutions
are short-term [involving] unrealistic diet plans, books and quick-fix products, there is no focus on long-term solutions," says Hill. He continues, "All levels of the healthcare
community need to come together to promote long-term lifestyle changes to achieve weight loss."
(HMR, Sharon Klaiman, 617/357-9876; UK, Dr. James Anderson, 606/257-4058; CORE, Dr. James Hill, 303/315-4924)
Launching Obesity Programs
To wage a war on obesity in your community, obesity experts suggest striking the right balance between administrative oversight, physician support and education by:
- Identifying a clinical team headed by a medical director and supported by a program administrator, health educators and nurses.
- Developing patient newsletters on the latest credible treatments for obesity and maintaining a healthy diet.
- Establishing programs for varying levels of weight problems from moderately overweight (20 pounds) to morbidly obese (60 pounds and over).
- Targeting the community with obesity education, focusing on key groups like churches, community centers and schools.
Source: University of Kentucky, CORE, HMR