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Providing online weight management in Primary Care: a mixed methods process evaluation of healthcare practitioners’ experiences of using and supporting patients using POWeR+

Providing online weight management in Primary Care: a mixed methods process evaluation of healthcare practitioners’ experiences of using and supporting patients using POWeR+
Providing online weight management in Primary Care: a mixed methods process evaluation of healthcare practitioners’ experiences of using and supporting patients using POWeR+
Background: an online weight management intervention (POWeR+) combined with a small amount of primary care healthcare practitioner support is effective in helping patients to lose weight, but little is known about how practitioners interact with the POWeR+ intervention or their experiences of providing support for patients using POWeR+. The aim of this study was to explore practitioners’ usage of POWeR+ and their experiences of providing support to patients using POWeR+.

Methods: set within a Randomised Controlled trial of POWeR+, practitioners’ usage of POWeR+ was automatically captured and a qualitative process analysis was conducted employing semi-structured telephone interviews with practitioners who provided support to patients using POWeR+. The usage analysis captured how 54 practitioners used the POWeR+ intervention. Thirteen telephone interviews explored practitioners’ experiences of using POWeR+ and providing patients with face-to-face or remote (email and telephone) support. Interview data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis.

Results: usage analysis indicated that almost all practitioners engaged with POWeR+. Pages which displayed patients’ progress and allowed practitioners to email patients were used the most. Practitioners found POWeR+ straightforward and easy to use. Some practitioners preferred providing support face-to-face, which they enjoyed more than remote support. A small number of nurses found providing non-directive support using the CARe approach (Congratulate, Ask, Remind) challenging, feeling it was the opposite of their normal approach. POWeR+ enabled practitioners to raise the topic of weight loss with patients and POWeR+ was viewed as a superior alternative to existing weight management support which was limited in most practices. Still some practitioners found it difficult to fit providing support into their busy schedules.

Conclusions: overall, practitioners engaged well with POWeR+ and perceived providing patients with support whilst using POWeR+ as acceptable and feasible. CARe provides a potentially useful model for how practitioners can combine human and digital support in a cost-effective way, which could be useful for the management of other conditions. Some potential barriers to implementation were identified, which allowed modification of POWeR+. The findings suggest that implementing this cost-effective online weight management intervention in Primary Care would be feasible and acceptable to practitioners.
Obesity, mixed methods, process analysis, healthcare practitioners, weight loss, digital intervention, e-health
1-13
Smith, Emily
14999f6c-eac3-403b-b3df-f8c1bd0788ee
Bradbury, Katherine
87fce0b9-d9c5-42b4-b041-bffeb4430863
Scott, Lisa
2d9ac685-b7eb-49f7-9031-29684755c9d6
Steele, Mary
dd7833c4-c04c-495c-aa9a-b23e01a89762
Little, Paul
1bf2d1f7-200c-47a5-ab16-fe5a8756a777
Yardley, Lucy
64be42c4-511d-484d-abaa-f8813452a22e
Smith, Emily
14999f6c-eac3-403b-b3df-f8c1bd0788ee
Bradbury, Katherine
87fce0b9-d9c5-42b4-b041-bffeb4430863
Scott, Lisa
2d9ac685-b7eb-49f7-9031-29684755c9d6
Steele, Mary
dd7833c4-c04c-495c-aa9a-b23e01a89762
Little, Paul
1bf2d1f7-200c-47a5-ab16-fe5a8756a777
Yardley, Lucy
64be42c4-511d-484d-abaa-f8813452a22e

Smith, Emily, Bradbury, Katherine, Scott, Lisa, Steele, Mary, Little, Paul and Yardley, Lucy (2017) Providing online weight management in Primary Care: a mixed methods process evaluation of healthcare practitioners’ experiences of using and supporting patients using POWeR+. Implementation Science, 12 (1), 1-13, [69]. (doi:10.1186/s13012-017-0596-6).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Background: an online weight management intervention (POWeR+) combined with a small amount of primary care healthcare practitioner support is effective in helping patients to lose weight, but little is known about how practitioners interact with the POWeR+ intervention or their experiences of providing support for patients using POWeR+. The aim of this study was to explore practitioners’ usage of POWeR+ and their experiences of providing support to patients using POWeR+.

Methods: set within a Randomised Controlled trial of POWeR+, practitioners’ usage of POWeR+ was automatically captured and a qualitative process analysis was conducted employing semi-structured telephone interviews with practitioners who provided support to patients using POWeR+. The usage analysis captured how 54 practitioners used the POWeR+ intervention. Thirteen telephone interviews explored practitioners’ experiences of using POWeR+ and providing patients with face-to-face or remote (email and telephone) support. Interview data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis.

Results: usage analysis indicated that almost all practitioners engaged with POWeR+. Pages which displayed patients’ progress and allowed practitioners to email patients were used the most. Practitioners found POWeR+ straightforward and easy to use. Some practitioners preferred providing support face-to-face, which they enjoyed more than remote support. A small number of nurses found providing non-directive support using the CARe approach (Congratulate, Ask, Remind) challenging, feeling it was the opposite of their normal approach. POWeR+ enabled practitioners to raise the topic of weight loss with patients and POWeR+ was viewed as a superior alternative to existing weight management support which was limited in most practices. Still some practitioners found it difficult to fit providing support into their busy schedules.

Conclusions: overall, practitioners engaged well with POWeR+ and perceived providing patients with support whilst using POWeR+ as acceptable and feasible. CARe provides a potentially useful model for how practitioners can combine human and digital support in a cost-effective way, which could be useful for the management of other conditions. Some potential barriers to implementation were identified, which allowed modification of POWeR+. The findings suggest that implementing this cost-effective online weight management intervention in Primary Care would be feasible and acceptable to practitioners.

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Accepted/In Press date: 8 May 2017
e-pub ahead of print date: 25 May 2017
Published date: 25 May 2017
Keywords: Obesity, mixed methods, process analysis, healthcare practitioners, weight loss, digital intervention, e-health

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 412145
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/412145
PURE UUID: 95f0a872-558e-44a2-b348-a3c008e228a9
ORCID for Katherine Bradbury: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-5513-7571
ORCID for Mary Steele: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-2595-3855
ORCID for Paul Little: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-3664-1873
ORCID for Lucy Yardley: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-3853-883X

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Date deposited: 11 Jul 2017 16:32
Last modified: 12 Jul 2024 01:52

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Contributors

Author: Emily Smith
Author: Lisa Scott
Author: Mary Steele ORCID iD
Author: Paul Little ORCID iD
Author: Lucy Yardley ORCID iD

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