In Practice

A successful lifestyle intervention model replicated in diverse clinical settings

Sean Mark, Stefan du Toit, Timothy D Noakes, Kim Nordli, Douwette Coetzee, Michael Makin, Shani van der Spuy, Justin Frey, Jay Wortman

Abstract


Lifestyle interventions can treat metabolic syndrome and prevent type 2 diabetes mellitus, but they remain underutilised in routine practice. In 2010, an LI model was created in a rural primary care practice and spread with few resources to four other rural practices. A retrospective chart review evaluated changes in health indicators in two practice environments by following 372 participants, mainly women (mean age 52 years). Participants had a mean body mass index of 37 kg/m2at baseline and lost an average of 12% of their initial body weight as a result of the intervention. Among participants at the first intervention site for whom cardiometabolic data were available, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome decreased from 58% at baseline to 19% at follow-up. Taken as a whole, our experience suggests that LIs are feasible and deliver meaningful results in routine primary care practice.

 


Authors' affiliations

Sean Mark, Approach Analytics, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada

Stefan du Toit, Valemount Health Center, British Columbia, Canada

Timothy D Noakes, Department of Human Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town; Sports Science Institute of South Africa, Cape Town, South Africa

Kim Nordli, Valemount Health Center, British Columbia, Canada

Douwette Coetzee, Omineca Medical Clinic, Vanderhoof, British Columbia, Canada

Michael Makin, Omineca Medical Clinic, Vanderhoof, British Columbia, Canada

Shani van der Spuy, Omineca Medical Clinic, Vanderhoof, British Columbia, Canada

Justin Frey, Omineca Medical Clinic, Vanderhoof, British Columbia, Canada

Jay Wortman, Department of Family Practice, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Full Text

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Keywords

Lifestyle intervention; Metabolic syndrome; Type 2 diabetes; Primary care practice

Cite this article

South African Medical Journal 2016;106(8):763-766. DOI:10.7196/SAMJ.2016.v106i8.10136

Article History

Date submitted: 2015-10-12
Date published: 2016-07-03

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