Effect of Child Overweight/Obesity Didactic Session on Resident Confidence and Detection

Objective. To evaluate the impact of an obesity didactic session for pediatric physicians on confidence in counseling and identified overweight/obesity and follow-up recommendations. Methods. Pediatric residents underwent training and completed pre/post online surveys evaluating confidence in obesity prevention and identification. A booster training occurred 1 year later. Pre-/post-training scores were compared using χ(2) or Fisher’s exact tests. Electronic medical records data for patients ≥3 years with BMI-for-age percentile ≥85 during 3 months prior/following the training/booster compared frequency of overweight/obesity identification and follow-up recommendations (≤3 months recommended vs longer) using logistic regression adjusting for age and overweight/obese status. Results. Post trainings, improvements in confidence to define/screen for obesity were observed, with a decline between trainings. Overweight/obese identification and follow-up time recommendations improved post-training (identification: 14.2% to 27.4%, adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 3.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.54-6.51; follow-up: 48.9% to 58.9%, aOR = 1.63, 95% CI = 1.01-2.64), aOR = 1.77, 95% CI = 1.10-2.85, and identification remained stable/above pre-training rates both pre-/post-booster (25.8%, aOR = 3.14, 95% CI = 1.53-6.45; and 22.1%, aOR = 2.57, 95% CI = 1.25-5.30, respectively). Recommended follow-up time rates continued to rise when measured pre-booster (60.6%, aOR = 1.77, 95% CI = 1.10-2.85), then declined (46.0%, aOR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.60-1.52). Conclusion. This didactic session improved resident confidence in defining/screening, identification of overweight/obesity and follow-up recommendations; however, rates of identification remained low. The successes of this intervention support similar didactic sessions in residency programs and identifies opportunities for improved resident/attending education.