# Medical conduct and knowledge about physical activity counseling in the largest hospital complex in Latin America

## TL;DR

This study examines how physicians in a large Latin American hospital counsel patients on physical activity, finding that while they recognize its importance, training gaps limit their ability to recommend it effectively.

## Contribution

The study identifies significant gaps in physicians' training and knowledge regarding physical activity counseling in a large tertiary hospital setting.

## Key findings

- Only 40.7% of physicians had previous training on physical activity counseling.
- Despite high perceived self-efficacy, only 48.4% recommended physical activity in all consultations.
- Knowledge of physical activity recommendations was rated as low to very low, with correct answers ranging from 49% to 17%.

## Abstract

•PA training is allied to assessing, knowledge, and recognizing skills in PA counseling.•Training on PA is the key for physicians to be confident in their counseling abilities.•High self-efficacy for PA counseling is associated with willingness to prescribe PA.•Major gaps in physicians’ knowledge of PA recommendations were identified.

PA training is allied to assessing, knowledge, and recognizing skills in PA counseling.

Training on PA is the key for physicians to be confident in their counseling abilities.

High self-efficacy for PA counseling is associated with willingness to prescribe PA.

Major gaps in physicians’ knowledge of PA recommendations were identified.

To characterize practices and knowledge regarding PA counseling at a large tertiary hospital.

Cross-sectional observational study.

Physicians with an active medical practice within the university hospital were invited to respond to an online survey.

A questionnaire designed to capture information on medical training, life habits and knowledge about PA.

Sedentary behavior, clinical practice and self-efficacy were assessed by Likert-type questions, whereas regular practice, previous training, and knowledge of PA were evaluated through dichotomous questions (answers: “yes or no” or “true or false”).

Response rate was 11.5 % (50.6 % female, 44.9 ± 12.8 years), 67.7 % were physically active, and 63.3 % had 4 to 8 h/day of sedentary behavior. Only 40.7 % had previous training on PA, 99.7 % recognized the importance of recommending PA, but only a small part (48.4 %) recommended PA in all consultations (the main barrier was lack of specific training). In addition, 69.2 %, 58.7 % and 65.5 % rated their abilities to collect PA history, assess contraindications, and engage the patient as good/excellent, respectively. Knowledge of PA was rated as low to very low, with correct answers ranging from 49 % to 17 % and as low as ∼10 % (when considering the pediatric population).

Although physicians recognize the importance of PA counseling and have high perceived self-efficacy in relation to counseling skills, few put them into practice. This may be due to insufficient training on PA and/or the complexity of services provided at the tertiary hospital. The present results corroborate the need for improvements in medical training on PA.