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Multidisciplinary Approach to Obesity Management: A Case Report
Published on: May 30, 2025
Physician respect for patients with obesity
Mary Margaret Huizinga1, Lisa A Cooper, Sara N Bleich
1Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 2024 East Monument Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. mhuizin1@jhmi.edu
Journal of General Internal Medicine
|September 19, 2009
Summary
Physicians showed less respect for patients with higher body mass index (BMI). This study highlights potential bias in healthcare, impacting patient care quality.
Area of Science:
- Medical research
- Sociology of health
- Healthcare quality
Background:
- Societal obesity stigma is prevalent.
- Physician stigma towards obesity is documented.
- Hypothesis: Higher patient body mass index (BMI) correlates with lower physician respect.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between patient BMI and physician respect.
- To quantify the relationship between BMI and perceived physician respect.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of data from 40 physicians and 238 patients.
- Used Poisson regression to analyze the association between BMI and physician respect.
- Accounted for patient clustering within physicians.
Main Results:
- Mean patient BMI was 32.9 kg/m².
- Physicians reported low respect for 39% of patients.
- Higher BMI was significantly associated with lower physician respect (PrR 0.83, p=0.006).
Conclusions:
- Increased patient BMI is linked to decreased physician respect.
- Further research is needed to explore the impact on healthcare quality.
- Addresses potential physician bias in patient interactions.
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