Body Weight and Size Stigma, Bias, and Patient Care

Presented by Sean Phelan, PhD, MPH

Wednesday, October 14

This is a hybrid-style event:
11:45 a.m.-1:00 p.m. (MT)
Lunch for in-person attendees will be served at 11:30 a.m.

Location: University of Colorado Anschutz, Research 2, 12700 E 19th Ave, Aurora, CO 80045 (Second floor, Krugman Conference Hall) OR Zoom

Register today to join the CU Anschutz Department of Family Medicine and fellow healthcare colleagues for our 6th Annual CSTAHR Greg White Levitt Lecture: "Body Weight and Size Stigma, Bias, and Patient Care," presented by Sean Phelan, PhD, MPH. 

Stigma affects the lives and well-being of higher-weight people in a variety of ways across numerous domains. In the healthcare setting, weight stigma can impact clinical decision-making and interpersonal care quality, resulting in patient stress, impaired communication, and disengagement from clinical encounters. Downstream effects include reduced adherence to recommendations, delayed or avoided future care, and the psychological and physiological impact of stress. The growing use of weight loss medications raises new questions about the relationship between stigma, perceptions of body weight, and weight management. This presentation will focus on the attitudes and structural factors that contribute to weight stigma in the health care setting, the pathways whereby stigma affects patient behavior, experience, and health, and recommendations for providing more stigma-sensitive care.

- ALL ARE WELCOME -

Sean Phelan, PhD, MPH, is a Professor in the Division of Epidemiology and Department of Family Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.  His background is in social epidemiology and health services research. Dr. Phelan’s research program examines the impact of stigma on the delivery and quality of health care and health care outcomes, as well as factors that contribute to attitudes about stigmatized, marginalized, and minoritized groups. Much of his research has focused on body weight- and body size-related stigma and targets strategies to improve the quality of interpersonal care and care experience for people living in larger bodies. 

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Questions or trouble registering? Contact:

Department of Family Medicine Communications
[email protected]