What obesity interventions, if any, are provided by paediatric nurses in the hospital setting?

BACKGROUND The prevalence of childhood obesity in New Zealand (NZ) is increasing at an alarming rate and is implicated in the onset of serious co-morbidities of both a physical and psychological nature. Research shows overweight and obese children are more likely to stay overweight into adulthood. In the long-term, childhood obesity will become an increasing economic drain for NZ with mounting expenses in healthcare along with wider costs to individuals and society. Deprivation and ethnic disparities have been shown to have multiple links with increased rates of obesity, and these disparities are more prevalent in Māori and Pasifika populations in NZ. AIM, OBJECTIVES AND RESEARCH QUESTION The research aim was to determine what forms of obesity interventions were currently known or utilised/implemented by paediatric nurses in NZ hospitals, and to survey those nurses for their ideas around potential utilisation of obesity prevention/weight loss intervention services. The research question was ‘What obesity interventions, if any, are being provided by paediatric nurses in New Zealand’s hospitals?’ METHODS A quantitative descriptive questionnaire method was employed. Participants were sourced from four NZ District Health Boards (DHBs) and a New Zealand Nursing Organisation (NZNO) Section via email. The questionnaire was developed using SurveyMonkey®, consisted of 19 questions and a total of 33 questionnaires were eligible for analysis. RESULTS There were limited obesity interventions provided by paediatric nurses to overweight or obese children. The majority of respondents had awareness of overweight and obesity management services available but referred few patients or families. The main three perceived barriers for referrals to obesity management services were impact of the RN’s work load, time and the family not wanting any intervention. This questionnaire also revealed that RN’s had a poor knowledge of DHB interventions, protocols or guidelines relating to child obesity, with under half of the respondents being aware of any their DHB had in place. However, 87% of respondents indicated they were interested in receiving education on obesity and weight loss interventions they could utilise within their daily nursing practice. DISCUSSION This questionnaire has provided insight into the current obesity interventions being utilized by paediatric RN’s in NZ, as well as a basis from which further research can be conducted in the area of hospital-based obesity prevention strategies. Given that the prevalence of childhood obesity is on the rise in NZ, effective interventions to address this problem are necessary in order to protect the health and wellbeing of future generations. It has been shown by this research that paediatric RN’s in NZ have awareness of overweight and obesity management services but do not utilise them frequently. Few respondents were aware of any protocols or guidelines they could use in daily practice to guide them in overweight and obesity management of children. Multiple barriers to providing weight loss interventions appear to be a significant issue. It has been shown that to help eliminate potential barriers, obesity prevention/interventions need to be provided from multiple health agencies dealing with children. This allows for a multifaceted approach with regular healthy weight messages reaching the children. Also, health care professionals need guidance and training on how to effectively communicate sensitive issues like children’s weight, along with discussions around interventions and services. CONCLUSION It has been shown that hospital paediatric RN’s have limited guidance by way of clinical documentation in relation to overweight and obesity interventions for children. From the results of this questionnaire the researcher recommends the introduction of weight management guidelines for paediatric RN’s which incorporate BMI measurements of children upon admission to hospital, provision of quick health education intervention on food, activity, behaviour change messages and offers of a referral to a community initiative. Effective training in communication skills is required for these messages to be conveyed effectively, as well as understanding the necessary lifestyle education to provide to families.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Nursing

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters

Grantor

Eastern Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2014

Author dc:creator

• Repko, Diana

• New Zealand
• paediatric nurses
• children
• obesity
• interventions
• hospitals
• ethnic groups
• tamariki Māori
• Pasifika children
• deprivation
• surveys

Statement dc:rights

• All righs reserved

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10652/6414

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:null:10652/6414