Problem: According to Jordan-Welch and Harbaugh, childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions, yet there is no change on the horizon despite the release of EBP guidelines regarding primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity by the American Medical Association (AMA) in 2007. A systematic review of the literature revealed that primary care providers can have a dramatic impact on high-quality and cost-effective care when addressing childhood obesity in families, yet providers are reluctant to engage children and their families due to a lack of confidence regarding the topic. Purpose and Scope: The purpose of this Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) project was to describe the level of Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity before and after participation in an online educational intervention on childhood weight management. Using descriptive-interventional methodology, the study variable of APN confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity was tested using a tool developed by Beno et al. and adapted for the purposes of this interventional design. The adapted instrumentation included a 22-item 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire regarding assessment and management of childhood obesity. Goal and Objectives: The goal of the project was to successfully implement an online teaching intervention for APNs regarding primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity. The objectives were: (a) to describe aggregate demographic characteristics of the APN participants, (b) to describe APN pre-intervention confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity, (c) to describe APN post-intervention confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity, and (d) to describe APN confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity before and after participation in an online educational intervention on childhood weight management. Plan and Evaluation: Phase One: Conduct a literary needs assessment using a published evidence-based critique template. Phase Two: Design an online teaching intervention using the EBP approach. Phase Three: Implement an online teaching intervention for a projected sample of APN participants in a national online forum listserve. Phase Four: Evaluate the level of APN confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity before and after participation in an online educational intervention on childhood weight management. Outcome and Results: Pre-intervention and post-intervention measures revealed a statistically significant increase in APN confidence in primary care assessment and management of childhood obesity from a mean total score of 39% at pre-test to a mean total score of 99% at post-test. Moreover, pre-test/post-test performance measures were found to be statistically significant, while reliability estimates based on internal consistency for the instrumentation also achieved significance with regard to the tool’s performance in this interventional design.
