Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Deferred
Integrate body image training into medical, nursing, and parent-interacting professional programmes within two years.
Recommendation
We urge Health Education England, the General Medical Council and Nursing and Midwifery Council to collaborate with third sector organisations that are currently educating people about, and promoting awareness of, body image issues, and after a period of assessment, integrate the most effective existing training and resources into all training programmes within the medical, nursing and midwifery fields within the next two years. We echo the Mental Health Foundation’s recommendation for any further training for professionals interacting with parents - that is, GPs, health visitors, dietitians and other frontline practitioners - to include information about how parents and carers can, from a very early age, positively influence their children’s feelings about their bodies through the behaviours and attitudes they express. (Paragraph 77) The balance of tackling obesity and reducing weight stigma
Government Response Summary
The government's response does not address the recommendation to integrate body image training into medical, nursing, and midwifery curricula. Instead, it discusses the lack of plans for nationally required annual holistic health and wellbeing assessments and the existing health visiting and school nurse delivery model.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
There are no current plans to introduce nationally required annual holistic health and wellbeing assessments. An updated national health visiting and school nurse delivery model was published in 2021, providing guidance on how these services can be commissioned and provided locally. It provides greater emphasis on assessment of children, young people and family needs, and the skill mix to respond. This is to support local commissioning decisions and relevant partners in local authorities, the NHS , voluntary sector and partners. There are no mandated reviews for school-aged children. However, there are opportunities to develop reviews based on evidence and clinical judgement. These are suggested at important development stages and transition points. Partnership, integration, communication and multi-agency work remain key to improving outcomes. We will continue to support commissioners in ICBs and local government with resources, including a menu of evidence-based interventions for the Healthy Child Programme to address the needs of children and families.