CHSU Discovery

Nationally, studies have found high attrition rates for pediatric patients that were diagnosed with childhood obesity based on their BMI. Our study is aimed at investigating any procedures currently in place at Omni Health, an FQHC, that are contributing to higher attrition rates of well child visits. Our study will focus on determining whether there are certain demographics that predispose a patient to being non-compliant with their treatment plans and wellness visits after the diagnosis and how certain clinic procedures could improve or worsen these statistics.  

Our study population will include members from Fresno County, CA (75.7% white, 54.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 5.9% Black or African American). Patients and families were recruited via a stratified random selection process that balances the population based on gender, age and race. Our study will measure quantitative variables such as height, weight, and age, as well as qualitative data including cultural idiosyncrasies and parental opinions concerning ease of complying to program treatment protocols and schedules. The survey will collect the aforementioned data from pediatric patients and their families. The survey will be administered verbally, over telephone, to patients who have missed their wellness clinic appointment for the year. Informal consent will be collected by informing them what exactly will be recorded as well as asking the patient for consent. The answers will be recorded verbatim and translated/documented to a smartsheet. There will be a total of 10 questions on the survey and the questions will be categorized as follows: 5 questions addressing patients and their family’s own knowledge of BMI and clinical relevance, 2 questions about reasons for missing recent appointments, and 3 questions about socioeconomic background. 

In this study, the data will be aggregated and applied against our hypothesis. The survey is currently being piloted at the OMNI Health Corporate Office in Fresno. We have found the response rate to be approximately 20% and the questions have been well understood by the patient population so far during the pilot period. The data collection will continue until January 2025. At which point, the data will be interpreted and presented with results and possible solutions for the clinic to adopt to lower the attrition rate of their obese pediatric population.