Childhood and adolescent obesity: Primary Health Care Physicians’ perspectives from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Primary health care (PHC) physicians are foremost to confront childhood and adolescent obesity. Our objective was to evaluate PHC Physicians perspectives for managing overweight/obesity in children and adolescents. METHODS: PHC services from eight public hospitals in Riyadh participated. A self-administered tool maintaining anonymity evaluated facilitators and barriers for managing overweight/obese children and adolescent patients. Physicians who \u27always\u27 recommended weight management for an overweight / obese patient during past year, by involving patient, parents, and others were classified as having positive and appropriate practice. RESULTS: Of the 58 respondents, 51.7% had appropriate practices. Lack of patient motivation (82.2%), and parental involvement (70.7%) were the major barriers. Physicians with appropriate practices differed in perspectives from those with less appropriate practices by attending continued education forums (p\u3c0.026), referring patients to sub-specialty (p\u3c 0.041), clinical knowledge (p\u3c0.039), convinced on interventions (p\u3c0.017), low concern for precipitating eating disorders (p\u3c0.019), comfortable in examining obese patients (p\u3c0.020), and considered patient\u27s readiness for weight change (p\u3c 0.007). CONCLUSION: Efforts are needed to equip PHC physicians in managing overweight and obesity in Saudi children and adolescents