Family physicians' views on their role in the management of childhood obesity: a mixed methods study from Turkey.

BACKGROUND

Childhood obesity (CO) is a high priority issue due to its serious health consequences and its rapid increase.

OBJECTIVES

To examine the views of primary care physicians (family physicians, FPs) in Turkey regarding their role in the management of CO and the barriers they perceive.

METHODS

Mixed methods approach. Data was collected in two major counties of Istanbul between February and May 2014. All Family Health Centres (FHCs) in the region were visited, and 180/284 FPs (63.4%) agreed to complete a structured questionnaire (22 questions). Of those, 48 FPs agreed to participate in in-depth interviews that were taken until saturation was 25. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics. For qualitative data, content analysis was applied to identify the themes.

RESULTS

Most of the FPs (93.3%) agreed that they have a role in managing CO. Almost all FPs (98.3%) agreed that for the 0-4-year-olds height and weight measures should be taken. However, only 67.6% recommended this for children aged 5-15 years. The most common barriers in the management of CO were reported as lack of time (68.9%) and FHCs not being utilized for the care of children aged 5-15 years old (53.3%) in Turkey. In-depth interviews showed that FPs tend to limit their role to identifying the problem and making the family aware of it.

CONCLUSION

Although FPs recognize primary healthcare as an appropriate setting for managing CO, they have concerns about being involved in the treatment.