Date Available

4-30-2015

Year of Publication

2015

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Committee Chair

Dr. Sharon Lock

Clinical Mentor

Dr. Cynthia Baxter

Committee Member

Dr. Kathy Wheeler

Abstract

The most current estimations from the CDC classify more than one third of the American population as obese (2011). This epidemic continues to contribute to a number of chronic diseases across the country including diabetes and heart disease, both associated with high morbidity and mortality (NHLBI, 1998). Billions of dollars are spent annually on obesity and obesity related conditions.

Perhaps this is what led the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to select Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity as a Leading Health Indicator in Healthy People 2020. The updated NHLBI guidelines, based on clinical evidence, offer a blueprint to accurately screen for, diagnose, treat, and evaluate obesity. One of the biggest recommendations in the guideline is a call for intensive, individualized, comprehensive weight management programs that include a dietary component, an exercise program and behavioral counseling. The MOVE Weight Management Program is one such program, built around national recommendations and provides a multifaceted tool to combat obesity in veterans.

This practice inquiry is a collection of three manuscripts which, collectively, address obesity and its management. The first manuscript is a Health Problem Paper, which addresses the Healthy People 2020 goals and the treatment of obesity through the use of nursing theory and guidelines. The second manuscript is a critical analysis of AHA/ACC/TOS Guideline for the Management of Overweight and Obesity in Adults (2013). The third and final manuscript details a Practice Inquiry Project, which evaluated the MOVE program at the Lexington VA on weight loss in veterans.

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