Obesity as a Chronic Disease: Practicing What We Preach to Overcome Stigma and Inspire Change

Obesity as a Chronic Disease: Practicing What We Preach to Overcome Stigma and Inspire Change is organized by PVI, PeerView Institute for Medical Education.

Release Date: November 27, 2023
Expiration Dates: November 26, 2024

Activity Description and Educational Objectives:
For people with obesity, early intervention is central to reducing the risk for related comorbidities. However, almost half of these people are never formally diagnosed, nor do they ever receive care specifically targeting their obesity. But why? Obesity can be challenging to discuss with patients due to clinician discomfort or uncertainty, lack of training, or personal biases. For these reasons and more, there is no denying that managing obesity is complex. Characterizing obesity as a chronic disease resulting from metabolic adaptation rather than a personal failing means we can reframe how we approach its treatment.

This latest educational opportunity on obesity from PeerView, developed in collaboration with the University of Florida College of Medicine, teaches primary care providers how to practice what they preach and inspire change. By the end of this activity, you will have gained knowledge to prioritize obesity management in the primary care setting, learn strategies to effectively discuss anti-obesity medications, and get expert tools to modify obesity management plans to meet individual long-term goals. This informative activity features expert faculty, a video segment depicting patient-provider conversations (thanks to skilled actors with the University of Delaware Healthcare Theater Program), and the latest on practical skills and clinical data.

Upon completion of this activity, participants should be better able to:

• Initiate nonbiased discussions with patients early in the course of obesity to establish and achieve realistic weight loss goals to prevent the development and progression of obesity-related comorbidities
• Evaluate the mechanisms of action, efficacy, and safety of anti-obesity medications as adjunctive treatment to support behavior and lifestyle efforts towards achieving and maintaining weight loss over the long term and to minimize the impact of obesity-related comorbidities
• Personalize treatment plans to avoid or minimize comorbidities and optimize long-term outcomes for people with obesity consistent with current guideline recommendations, available evidence, and according to shared decision-making principles