Synapse
⌘+K
Synapse
PulseExploreClubsResearchersJournals
Instagram
HomeClubsExplore
September 17, 2026ObesitiesOpen Access

Between Empathy and Control: Nurses’ Experiences of Providing Obesity Care in a Tertiary Hospital

View Full Paper
Ask AI
Bookmark
Share

Authors

YRYaiza María Arvelo RodríguezCGCristo Manuel Marrero GonzálezAHAlfonso Miguel García Hernández

Discussion

Loading...

Member takes

Overview

Qualitative study reveals tensions between empathy and behavioral control among nurses providing obesity care, highlighting the need for stigma-sensitive training and interdisciplinary support.

Key Points

  • To examine how nurses conceptualize and deliver obesity care within an outpatient endocrinology and nutrition department at a tertiary hospital.
  • Interpretive qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews with six nurses (N=6) at a tertiary hospital in Tenerife, Spain, between August and October 2025.
  • Audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and evaluated using reflexive thematic analysis adhering to COREQ reporting guidelines.
  • Generated four main themes: cultivating trust and nonjudgmental relationships, balancing patient support against behavioral control, navigating patient experiences of shame and weight stigma, and providing care within systemic resource constraints.
  • Nurses reported persistent tensions between striving for person-centered empathy and executing weight-centric practices organized around behavioral supervision, which created frustration and emotional labor when psychological needs exceeded clinic capacity.

Cite This Study

Rodríguez et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6aabb7b85f706d05830e6f31https://doi.org/10.3390/obesities6050065
View Full Paper
Ask AI
Bookmark
Share