Obesity treatment across healthcare levels: collaboration and digital solutions - a qualitative study of health professional and patient perspectives

TL;DR

This study explores how collaboration and digital tools can improve obesity treatment by examining the perspectives of health professionals and patients.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into how digital solutions and collaboration across healthcare levels can enhance obesity care.

Findings

Patients and professionals emphasized the need for better communication and coordination in obesity care.

Digital solutions should align with patient needs while maintaining in-person therapeutic relationships.

Health professionals were more cautious about digital tools compared to patients.

Abstract

Obesity is a chronic condition, and long-term weight loss through lifestyle treatment remains challenging. Although early lifestyle interventions and coordinated care across healthcare levels are widely recognized as important, referral pathways and follow-up support often remain unclear for both patients and health professionals. Digital solutions may improve communication, knowledge sharing, and continuity of care; however, most tools target individual lifestyle change and do not support collaboration across healthcare levels. This study aimed to explore health professional and patient perspectives on how collaboration and digital solutions can improve obesity care across healthcare levels.

A qualitative design using triangulation of data sources with focus group interviews with health professionals (n = 12 across two focus groups) and individual interviews with patients (n = 12) was employed. Various health professionals from primary and specialist care, working with patients with obesity, were recruited via snowball sampling, whereby some professionals recommended colleagues with relevant experience. Patients were purposeful recruited for their experience with obesity treatment both in primary and specialist care. Both focus group and individual interviews followed semi-structured interview guides addressing experiences with obesity treatment, patient–professional relationships, collaboration across healthcare levels, and the use of digital solutions. All interviews were audio-recorded and analysed using thematic analysis.

Analysis of the interviews revealed four key themes: (1) Communication, trust, and experiences of stigma in patient–professional interactions; (2) Knowledge gaps and coordination across primary and specialist healthcare; (3) Interdisciplinary collaboration in obesity care pathways; (4) Experiences with digital solutions and in-person care in obesity treatment.

Successful implementation of digital solutions requires alignment with patient needs while preserving the therapeutic relationship through in-person care. Patients were generally receptive to increased collaboration and shared responsibilities, whereas health professionals expressed more caution. Strengthening collaboration across healthcare levels, combined with thoughtful use of digital solutions, may improve patient-centered obesity treatment.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12913-026-14155-4.

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