2021 in review: Obesity Canada (OC)

Despite the lingering effects of the pandemic in 2021, Obesity Canada (OC) was able to refocus its energies on broadening the global impact of its Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs), developed with the Canadian Association of Bariatric Physicians and Surgeons in 2020.

Two countries, Ireland and Chile, were selected from among several applicant nations to participate in a pilot program this year to translate the CPGs and design knowledge mobilization tactics for policy makers, healthcare professionals and the public. OC hopes to expand the program to even more countries. Learn more about it here.

OC also retooled its flagship online education program to reflect the CPGs. A collaboration between OC, the Canadian Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism, the European Association for the Study of Obesity and MD Briefcase, the Advancing Obesity Management Program features 10 individually accredited modules on topics from weight bias to behavioural interventions, pharmacotherapy, bariatric surgery and more. The network’s Certified Bariatric Educator (CBE) exam and a new online and in-person obesity management workshop, Calibre (Canadian Advanced Learning in Bariatric Care), will be available in 2022.

Canada is spending over $1 billion on much-needed national strategies for most major chronic diseases, but a well-funded framework for obesity care remains elusive. Much work remains to be done before the CPGs become the standard of care.  To this end, OC has dispensed with its traditional advisory committee structure and created four new Action Teams – small working groups of experts and graduate students who will focus on conducting strategic research designed to answer key questions and identify important knowledge gaps in key areas (policy, research, education and community) related to developing an obesity framework. The goal of each team will be to produce annual, high-impact intelligence that informs the creation of the framework, while also providing contributors’ the opportunity to do meaningful, publishable work.

In 2022, OC will release pediatric obesity care guidelines and related educational and knowledge mobilisation strategies.