Supporting faculty development for obesity education: A National Survey of United States family medicine residency programme directors

Abstract

Obesity is the most common chronic condition in the United States (US), yet primary care physicians face barriers in providing obesity treatment. This study examines the prevalence of American Board of Obesity Medicine (ABOM) certified obesity specialists on the faculty of US Family Medicine residency training programmes, the preparedness of graduating resident physicians to treat obesity, and residency training programme director preferences for supporting faculty development to improve residency education in obesity management. This cross-sectional on-line survey of programme directors addressed the number of ABOM-certified faculty, perceived graduate preparedness to treat obesity, and priorities to improve faculty expertise and obesity curriculum. Of 672 eligible programme directors, 298 (44%) responded to our survey. Most programmes (76%) had no ABOM-certified faculty. The proportion of programme directors assessing their graduates as prepared to care for patients with obesity has significantly decreased in the last 5 years (2018: 74%, 2022: 58%, p = .016). Residents in programmes with ABOM-certified faculty member were more likely to be assessed as very prepared to provide medical care (18% vs. 7.8% p = .047). A majority (54%) of programme directors identified limited faculty training and expertise as the biggest faculty and resident-level barrier to quality obesity care. This study demonstrates an important trend towards increasing ABOM-certification among Family Medicine residency programme faculty and an urgent need to prioritise faculty development to improve faculty expertise and resident training to address the obesity epidemic.