Stigma & Communication

Weight stigma harms patient outcomes across healthcare settings. The session covers person-first language in obesity ('person with obesity' vs 'obese person'), healthcare-provider implicit bias and the post-2024 STRIDE training data, the 2023 Lancet Commission on weight stigma recommendations, anti-stigma training in medical education, patient-centred communication frameworks, and media portrayal. Discussion addresses BMI as a stigmatising tool, the 'fat acceptance' vs 'health at every size' frameworks, weight-loss-resistance and patient self-blame, employer weight discrimination, internalised weight bias measurement, and the long-term outcome data on stigma reduction interventions.