Sponsor
This work was supported by The National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (grant number P30 AG15297). Publication of this article in an open access journal was funded by the Portland State University Library’s Open Access Fund.
Published In
Obesity Science & Practice
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-13-2017
Subjects
Health behavior, Therapeutic alliance, Indians of North America, Alaska Natives, Discrimination against overweight persons, Body image -- Social aspects, Weight loss
Abstract
Objective The objective of this study was to examine patient–provider relationships among American Indians and Alaska Native (AI/AN) patients by examining associations between patient activation, perceived provider weight bias and working alliance. Patient activation is generally defined as having the knowledge, skills and confidence to manage one's health.
Methods Among a sample of 87 AI/AN adults presenting for general medical care at an urban clinic in the north-west region of the USA, ordinary least squares regression analysis was completed to examine associations.
Results Better working alliance scores were associated with increased patient activation, while perceived provider weight bias was associated with reduced patient activation. In addition, those with class II obesity had decreased patient activation.
Conclusion These findings point to the importance of a positive patient–provider relationship in AI/ANs. Optimal patient engagement and subsequent health outcomes warrant additional consideration of patients' perceptions of provider weight bias within the context of health promotion and interventions.
Locate the Document
DOI
10.1002/osp4.135
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/23388
Citation Details
Gonzales, K. L., Garcia, G. E., Jacob, M. M., Muller, C., Nelson, L., & Manson, S. M. Patient–provider relationship and perceived provider weight bias among American Indians and Alaska Natives. Obesity Science & Practice.
Description
© 2017 The Authors. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd, World Obesity and The Obesity Society. Obesity Science & Practice.
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.