View source for Parent and carer experiences of health care professionals' communications about a child's higher weight: a qualitative systematic review

{{STARDIT
|initiative_type=Type A
|geographic_locations=Public discourse on obesity has shifted in recent years and created pressure to change the way that weight is discussed in health care. A child’s higher weight can be a sensitive issue to discuss in health care, but successful communication with parents can increase parental compliance with treatment and improve overall family welfare. It is, therefore, important to explore how parents and carers experience the communication about children’s higher weight to ensure effective, up-to-date, and ethical counseling on childhood obesity.
|description=Qualitative Systematic Review
|purpose=None
|organisations_involved=The objective of this systematic review was to identify, critically appraise, and synthesize the best available qualitative evidence on parent and carer experiences of communications from health care professionals concerning their child’s higher weight.
|public_urls=Tampere University; Finnish Centre for Evidence-Based Health Care: A JBI Centre of Excellence; University of Oulu; Oulu University Hospital; Pirkanmaa Hospital District
|other_identifiers=https://journals.lww.com/jbisrir/fulltext/2025/04000/parent_and_carer_experiences_of_health_care.3.aspx?context=featuredarticles&collectionid=2
|other_relevant_information=childhood obesity; experience; health care professionals; parents/carers; weight communication
|date_range=3. Completed
|methods=21/01/2022-19/12/2024
|theoretical_models_or_values=The following databases were systematically searched from 2010 onward: MEDLINE (EBSCOhost), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), PsycINFO (Ovid), Scopus, LILACS, and the Finnish health sciences database MEDIC. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (ProQuest) was searched for unpublished articles. The search was conducted in July 2022 and updated in October 2023. No country or language limits were applied. A manual search was used to supplement the database searches. Study selection including title and abstract screening, full-text screening, critical appraisal, and data extraction were performed by 2 reviewers. The research findings were categorized and aggregated into synthesized findings. The synthesized findings were assigned confidence scores, and categories and finalized synthesized findings were agreed upon by all reviewers.
|author_profiles=Terhi Koivumäki
|orcid=https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Terhi-Koivumaeki
|report_tasks=0000-0002-8538-8053
|date_of_submission=terhi.koivumaki@tuni.fi
|group_sizes=Koivumäki, Terhi; Kääriäinen, Maria; Tuomikoski, Anna-Maria; Kaunonen, Marja - authors 
Jaana Isojärvi - information specialist

|group_tasks=4 in one, 1 in another
|group_task_methods=TK was responsible for designing the analysis, screening citations, full-text review, critical appraisal, data extraction, data analysis, synthesis of the review, and writing the manuscript. AT, MKä, and MKa contributed to the design of the data analysis, full-text review, critical appraisal, data extraction, data analysis, checking the quality of the methodology, synthesis of the review, and reviewing the manuscript. Information Specialist Jaana Isojärvi for her assistance with the search strategy.
|communication_modes=Title and abstract screening; discussion amongst authors/reviewers; critical appraisal; data extraction; data synthesis
|time_spent=TK was supported by a grant for her PhD studies from the Foundation of Alli Paasikivi.
|non_monetary_resources=Approx. four years
|unrecorded_outcomes=It is recommended that HCPs who communicate with parents and carers on a child’s higher weight have the requisite knowledge of sensitive communication and weight stigma. (Grade B) 
ii) Shifting the communication focus from the child’s weight to overall well-being could encourage increased parental engagement in communication and treatment. (Grade B)
iii) The provision of care should be multidisciplinary and individualized according to the child’s, parents’/carers’, and family’s needs. (Grade B)
iv) Information that is provided to the parents and carers should be individualized to enhance that parent’s or carer’s understanding. (Grade B)
v) Contact with a familiar HCP was seen positively by parents and carers; therefore, consistent provision
of HCPs is suggested. (Grade B)
Recommendations for policy
i) To enhance HCPs’ communication with parents and carers, it is essential to provide training opportunities on communication skills and to provide adequate resources for working with families. (Grade B)
Recommendations for research
i) Fathers were under-represented in the study findings. Even though there is some research
on childhood obesity from the father’s perspective, we need more research concentrating on
fathers’ perspectives and experiences.
ii) Although this review included studies with different ethnic groups, ethnic diversity was not addressed sufficiently. We need more research on how different ethnicities relate to the new obesity discourse and how it affects weight communication.
iii) There are contextual differences in the prevalence of childhood obesity, such as a rural or urban environment and household income. Additionally, there are cultural differences attached to childhood obesity and its treatment. Therefore, it would be beneficial to do more research on the experiences of families from different backgrounds.
|evaluation_methods=Best Practice Information Sheet to help inform and implement into health care practice
}}
Testing  - I reimported and did the 'only change certain fields thing.