Teaching Second-Year Medical Students How to Counsel Pediatric Patients With Unhealthy Body Mass Index

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Medical Education
• Public Health

Background:

• Childhood obesity is a global health concern with significant long-term consequences.
• Physicians often face challenges in effectively screening and counseling pediatric patients on weight management.
• Existing medical curricula may lack sufficient training in practical weight management communication skills.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of an interactive educational session designed to enhance medical students' skills in pediatric healthy weight management counseling.
• To assess changes in students' self-reported knowledge, comfort, and confidence in discussing weight with patients and caregivers.
• To evaluate students' ability to apply learned counseling skills in a simulated clinical setting.

Main Methods:

• An interactive educational session was developed for second-year medical students focusing on pediatric weight management.
• A pre-/post-Likert survey assessed students' self-assessed knowledge, comfort, and confidence.
• Standardized patient encounters evaluated students' practical counseling skills with a teen experiencing weight gain.

Main Results:

• The educational session significantly increased medical students' self-assessed knowledge regarding pediatric weight management.
• Students reported enhanced comfort and confidence in counseling patients and caregivers on healthy weight.
• Students demonstrated successful application of weight management counseling skills during simulated patient encounters.

Conclusions:

• Interactive educational sessions can effectively improve medical students' preparedness for pediatric weight management counseling.
• Further coaching is recommended to refine empathy skills in weight management discussions.
• Integrating such training into medical school curricula is vital for combating the pediatric obesity epidemic.