The service is offered to patients over the age of 18 years, with a BMI of ≥30 kg/m 2 and ≤ 28 kg/m 2, with at least ONE diagnosed or established risk factor. Central to MI is the initiation of “change talk” where the client is asked to articulate the advantages of change and the disadvantages of failing to change.Ī commissioned pharmacy-based weight management service has been provided in a number of UK regions. ![]() Where someone responds positively, a “Brief Intervention” is targeted at supporting behavioural change and may involve enrolment into an obesity programme where there is sufficient motivation. This “Brief Advice” may only take a few moments (if the individual expresses unwillingness to discuss this issue), or it might take up to 3 minutes. The pharmacist, or one of the pharmacy team, proactively and opportunistically raises the issue of weight and assesses willingness to engage in further discussion. reasons, allowing them to reach their own conclusions on the benefit of weight loss. Overweight patients in the pharmacy to collect diabetes medicines, for example are targeted using Motivational Interviewing (MI) skills: utilising the individual’s own obvious or covert desire to improve or prolong optimal health for family, social, financial, etc. There is a developing body of evidence for the efficacy of this approach. ![]() The information provided can come in the form of both healthy food messages-to eat five portions of food and vegetables a day- and exercise recommendations-adults should engage in a minimum of 30 minutes of at least moderate-intensity physical activity on 5 or more days of the week.Ī proactive active approach to weight management might involve innovative use of weighing scales, the calculation of BMI and waist-to-hip ratio calculation where clients are actively targeted. Passive health promotion initiatives posters, window displays and leaflets are possibly effective, but there is little evidence. The pharmacist and the pharmacy team can be utilised in a number of ways to help patients lose weight. Community pharmacy is already supporting these initiatives within a national strategy outlined in “ Choosing Health through pharmacy a programme for pharmaceutical public health 2005-2015” (Department of Health 2005), outlining the role for community pharmacy. The Government is driving local initiatives to support and facilitate behavioural change as the most effective means of improving public health. White Papers such as Choosing Health (2004) (Department-of-Health 2004) and Our Health, Our Care, Our Say (2006) (Department-of-Health 2006) commit to help people make healthier choices. ![]() Derek Wanless, in his reports to the UK government (Wanless 2002) on how the National Health Service will be funded in the future, also identified the considerable burden from disease resulting directly from obesity. The Foresight Report, focused on 2050, estimates if nothing is done, by that time, most adults will be obese, and healthcare costs will bankrupt our society (Foresight 2004). These healthcare costs are predicted to escalate over the coming years as the number of obese people in the population increases. The estimated costs of obesity in the UK, for example are believed to be at least £500 million a year in treatment costs to the NHS, and possibly, in excess of £200 million to the wider economy. ![]() Obesity, a physiological state affecting around 30% of the UK population (Foresight 2004), is an independent risk factor for many long-term conditions with significant financial consequences for Health Services and national economies.
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