SynthesisObesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity2021
A systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative studies exploring GPs' and nurses' perspectives on discussing weight with patients with overweight and obesity in primary care.
Synthesis in Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Enablers and barriers to implementing obesity assessments in clinical practice: a rapid mixed-methods systematic review.BMJ open · 2022Pooled it
- Experiences of treatment-resistant mental health conditions in primary care: a systematic review and thematic synthesis.BMC primary care · 2022Pooled it
- Association between characteristics of behavioural weight loss programmes and weight change after programme end: systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2021Pooled it
- A systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative studies exploring GPs' and nurses' perspectives on discussing weight with patients with overweight and obesity in primary care.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2021Pooled it
- Trial
- An eHealth Intervention in Pregnancy on Maternal Body Composition and Subsequent Perinatal Outcomes: A Randomized Trial.Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) · 2025Trial
- Gender differences in response to an opportunistic brief intervention for obesity in primary care: Data from the BWeL trial.Clinical obesity · 2021Trial
- The Influence of Relationships Within Behavioral Weight Management Interventions: An Overview.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026Review
- "What Patients Want": a qualitative study of expectations and ideal clinical encounters in obesity consultations.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2026Article
- One size does not fit all: Qualitative interviews with individuals with overweight or obesity and healthcare providers on navigating and supporting weight management.Obesity pillars · 2026Article
- Exploring the Needs and Perspectives of Patients with Obesity to Inform Health Care Practice: A Focus Group Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Future Medical Doctors Are Not Learning About Overweight and Obesity in Children: Curriculum Analysis at Five Australian Medical Schools.Medical science educator · 2025Article
- GPs' perspectives on GLP-1RAs for obesity management: a qualitative study in England.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025Article
- Article
- Perceived barriers and facilitators to implementing a weight management programme in a primary care setting in Singapore: a qualitative study.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Interprofessional collaboration on oral health for frail home-dwelling older people: a focus group study on needs and barriers experienced by general practitioners and community pharmacists.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Exploring the lived experience of women with gestational diabetes: A cross-sectional Irish national survey.Diabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association · 2025Article
- Article
- Applying a Weight Stigma Lens to Australian and International Obesity-Related Policies for Women Across the Preconception, Pregnancy and Postpartum Periods: A Mapping Review.Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals · 2025Review
- Effect of the National Enhanced Service for weight management on the content of annual review consultations for patients living with obesity and hypertension and/or diabetes.Clinical obesity · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Guidelines and evidence suggest primary care clinicians should give opportunistic interventions to motivate weight loss, but these rarely occur in practice. We sought to examine why by systematically reviewing qualitative research examining general practitioners' ('GPs') and nurses' views of discussing weight with patients. We systematically searched English language publications (1945-2018) to identify qualitative interview and focus group studies. Thematic methods were used to synthesise the findings from these papers. We synthesised the studies by identifying second-order themes (explanations offered by the original researchers) and third-order constructs (new explanations which went beyond those in the original publications). Quality assessment using the Joanna Briggs checklist was undertaken. We identified 29 studies (>601 GPs, nurses and GP trainees) reporting views on discussing weight with patients. Key second-order themes were lack of confidence in treatments and patients' ability to make changes, stigma, interactional difficulty of discussing the topic and a belief of a wider societal responsibility needed to deal with patients with overweight and obesity. The third-order analytical theme was that discussions about weight were not a priority, and other behavioural interventions, including those relating to smoking, often took precedent. GPs and nurses reported that noting body mass index measurements at every consultation alongside a framework to deliver interventions would likely increase the frequency and perceived efficacy of behavioural weight interventions. GPs and nurses acknowledge the importance of obesity as a health issue, but this is insufficient, particularly amongst GPs, for them to construe this as a medical problem to address with patients in consultations. Strategies to implement clinical guidelines need to make tackling obesity a clinical priority. Training to overcome interactional difficulties, regular weighing of patients and changing expectations and understanding of weight loss interventions are also probably required.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.