People With Obesity Value Respect and Being Listened to in Primary Care

THURSDAY, Sept. 4, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- Adults with obesity prefer a primary care visit characterized by respectful treatment and listening, according to a study published online in the September issue of Patient Education and Counseling.Kristal Lyn Brown, Ph.D., M.S.P.H., from Drexel University in Philadelphia, and colleagues codesigned an ideal primary care visit scenario with adults with obesity and then validated the design through a survey of 250 people with obesity.The researchers reported that the survey showed the mean quality for the ideal primary care visit was 9.4, which was significantly higher than their last visit (8.0). Elements ranked as highly important included "doctor treats me with care and respect" (96 percent), "doctor really listens" (95 percent), and "doctor refers to specialists who treat me with care and respect" (92 percent)."The survey results showed that people living with obesity want empathetic, respectful health care," Brown said in a statement. "We hope these results encourage providers and their staff to make their spaces more inclusive and free of weight bias and stigma."Several authors disclosed ties to relevant organizations.Abstract/Full Text.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter