Weight stigma and barriers to effective obesity care.
Puhl RM. Weight stigma and barriers to effective obesity care. Gastroenterol Clin North Am. 2023;52(2):417-428. doi:10.1016/j.gtc.2023.02.002.
Implicit biases and stigma can impede the delivery of safe, high-quality healthcare. This article outlines the ways in which stigma create barriers to effective care for patients with obesity (use of stigmatizing language, provider-held negative weight-based attitudes, lack of patient-centered communication, patient avoidance, and/or delay of care). The authors propose several strategies to reduce weight stigma in health care, including stigma-reduction education and training interventions.