Men’s Uptake of Specialist Treatment for Obesity (MUSTO)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Men’s Uptake of Specialist Treatment for Obesity - exploring how men living with obesity experience being invited to join an NHS specialist weight management programme (MUSTO)
IRAS ID
336130
Contact name
Amanda Nash
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 7 months, 19 days
Research summary
Research Summary:
Men are more likely than women to be obese and overweight, but are less likely to join weight management support programmes. This study will explore how men, living with obesity, experience being invited to join an NHS Specialist Weight Management Programme.
The study will last around six months and capture the voices of men, who are under-represented in weight management interventions and weight loss research, to understand what the enablers and barriers are for them to join a specialist weight management programme.
It will look to understand whether there are any factors that could be used to increase engagement among obese men and use any relevant findings to inform recommendations for an intervention, or a change in the way things are currently done. This is aimed at encouraging more men to take up the offer of weight management support.
The study involves interviewing male patients who are currently completing the Tier 3 Specialist Weight Management Programme in Plymouth or have completed the Programme within the last two years. Male buddies, previous users of the service who now volunteer to support others going through the programme, will also be interviewed.The aim is to understand men’s experiences and perspectives in order to identify any opportunities for improvement in the way men are invited to join. Improvements made could then lead to an increase in uptake and therefore reduce inequalities of access to treatment.
Summary of Results:
One in four men in England lives with obesity and men are more likely to be obese or overweight than women. Obesity is a problem because people who live obesity often don’t live as long as those without. People with obesity are often also affected by other diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. But fewer men than women enrol in weight management services and the reasons for this are not well understood. If we know the reasons, we may be able to take steps to address them and encourage more men to get help in future.This study was called Men’s Uptake of Specialist Treatment for Obesity (MUSTO). It is one of the first studies to explore the experiences of men who have been through an NHS Specialist (Tier 3) Weight Management Programme. The aim of the study was to interview men to understand what made it difficult for them and what encouraged them to enrol. It was carried out between November 2023 and July 2024 in Plymouth, where the NHS Tier 3 Specialist Weight Management Programme is run by Livewell Southwest. A Patient Advisory Group (PAG) was set up to support the study which included two male buddies. Buddies are people who have used the NHS Specialist Weight Management Programme and they now volunteer to support other patients going through it. The Patient Advisory Group helped the researchers by commenting on the design of the study, the information given to participants and how the results are shared. Nine patients who were completing or had recently completed the NHS Programme and 3 buddies were interviewed. We analysed these interviews using a technique called Reflexive Thematic Analysis. We identified four main themes. Two of these themes help explain why men don’t enrol in NHS Specialist Weight Management Programmes. They are:
• It’s culturally more acceptable for men to be overweight/obese (Theme 1). Participants reported that a larger size is associated with greater strength in men and male identity.
• Being vulnerable is uncomfortable for men (Theme 2) and so this discourages them from seeking help.But we found that when living with obesity becomes a health concern for men, they do need support (Theme 3). Participants told us that being referred for specialist treatment by a healthcare practitioner such as a GP or specialist nurse is helpful (Theme 4). The findings provide learning for healthcare practitioners in the way they have conversations with men about obesity. The findings also provide insight for NHS weight management leads around how they promote services to men. We would like to thank both the participants and the members of the Patient Advisory Group for their help with this research. This study was carried out by researchers at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust and the University of Derby. The study received no external funding and the Research Department at University Hospitals NHS Trust acted as the sponsor for the study.
REC name
South Central - Oxford B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/SC/0403
Date of REC Opinion
20 Nov 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion