Supporting Physicians With Education And Know-how in Identifying and Motivating Overweight Kids

Summary

The proposed study is a randomized control trial evaluating the efficacy of two training programs in increasing physician identification, documentation, and motivation of overweight children. Pediatric primary care physicians will be recruited from the College of Physician and Surgeons of Ontario and randomized into two practice-based interventions (behavioural/educational) which are a one-time training attendance. The educational intervention will focus on the medical management of pediatric obesity, the use of Body Mass Index charts, and information about how obese children would like to be approached by their physicians. The behavioural intervention will incorporate Motivational Interviewing tools in addition to an abbreviated training program received by the educational intervention group.

Conditions

• Obesity

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Standard Medical Training Educational

Educational is modeled on the Theory of Planned Action, which proposes that unless people believe that their actions can have an effect on the desired outcome they have little incentive to act or persevere in the face of difficulties. Based on this theory we will be providing physicians with information on how to calculate, plot and track BMI and how this can be associated with identification of overweight children before they present with symptoms of obesity. This intervention will attempt to demonstrate that BMI calculating, plotting and tracking are useful diagnostic monitoring tools and that their actions may lead to more effective prevention and/or treatment. The education intervention will not prescribe specific discussion initiation tools, although the participants will not be prevented from independently changing their communication behaviour.

BEHAVIORAL

Motivational Interviewing behavioural

The behavioural intervention will incorporate specific Motivational Interviewing (MI) tools and information from a previously completed qualitative study with obese children (Obadia et al.). This study generated suggestions of how physicians can encourage children to think positively about making changes towards a healthier body weight. This intervention is designed to address physicians' lack of self-efficacy in communicating with children and their families about achieving a healthy body weight, and therefore would likely benefit from the input from children and the patient-centred theme of MI. It is based on the Trans-Theoretical Model and Stages of Change which postulates that people follow a step-wise progression towards change with specific constructs that need to be addressed before moving to the next step. These constructs are integral to the principles of MI

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The Hospital for Sick Children

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Brian W McCrindle, MD · The Hospital for Sick Children

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2010-01-31

Primary Completion

2013-06-30

Completion

2013-06-30

Countries

• Canada

Study Locations