RCPI launches Professional Diploma in Obesity Care

The diploma is underpinned by recent guidelines, which define obesity as a complex chronic disease

Obesity continues to represent one of the greatest and most complex health challenges globally. With a substantial and growing proportion of the adult population living with obesity, the condition is associated with increased morbidity, significant psychosocial burden, and escalating pressures on the health service. It affects physical and mental health, wellbeing, and quality-of-life. Yet obesity is still often oversimplified to weight, body mass index (BMI), and personal responsibility.

The RCPI’s Professional Diploma in Obesity Care is a 10-month, fully online programme designed to strengthen the capacity of healthcare professionals and public health professionals to deliver evidence-based, person-centred, stigma-free care. Developed by obesity experts and co-designed with patient experts, the diploma addresses the urgent need for a coordinated, multidisciplinary response to obesity, reflecting how obesity care has evolved, and how it needs to continue evolving. 

Chronic disease

The diploma, which represents a level 9 qualification, is underpinned by the 2022 Irish clinical practice guidelines. The guidelines define obesity as a complex chronic disease and provides evidence-based, person-centred recommendations for prevention, assessment, treatment, and long-term care pathways. Recognised as a global leader in obesity care, Ireland was chosen to host the 2025 World Health Organisation (WHO) Demonstration Platform for the prevention and treatment of obesity, where delegates studied Ireland’s Model of Care for Obesity, as part of a global acceleration plan to improve how obesity is managed. 

Now formally recognised as a chronic, relapsing, multifactorial disease, we understand that obesity is shaped by an interplay of genetic, biological, psychological, social, and environmental influences. Acknowledging this shift, healthcare professionals increasingly recognise the need for enhanced education and support in obesity prevention and management.

Dr Jean O’Connell, Programme Co-Lead and HSE National Clinical Lead for Obesity, puts it simply: “When care focuses only on weight, we miss opportunities to improve health, and we risk reinforcing stigma. Holistic, evidence-based obesity prevention and management is vital in addressing unique patient needs and tackling obesity at a global level.”

When care focuses only on weight, we miss opportunities to improve health, and we risk reinforcing stigma

“One of the biggest myths about obesity is that it is simply about weight and willpower. These beliefs have shaped practice for decades, and they have caused harm,” Dr O’Connell explains.

Even as clinical guidelines evolve, patients continue to encounter weight-centred care or simplistic instructions centred solely on lifestyle change. People living with obesity frequently describe decades spent attempting to ‘fit’ BMI thresholds without receiving meaningful support for underlying drivers.

Dr Ximena Ramos Salas (PhD), a global specialist in obesity and weight stigma and Module 3 Lead, explains that while BMI is a useful population-level epidemiological screening tool, it does not diagnose obesity.

Dr Ramos Salas adds that BMI does not capture the biological, psychological, or social and commercial determinants that shape health outcomes. This mismatch between evidence and practice contributes to cycles of weight-loss and gain, internalised blame, stress, avoidance of healthcare services, and worsening health outcomes.

Dr Ramos Salas coordinated the Canadian Clinical Practice Guidelines for Adult Obesity Management – widely regarded as the gold standard in evidence-based obesity care – which greatly informed the 2022 Irish clinical guidelines.

“We oversimplify obesity, and that leads to bias, stigma and discrimination. Stigma doesn’t motivate change – it worsens health. International research also shows that stigma impacts disease screening uptake, education and employment opportunities, mental health, and treatment outcomes,” Dr Salas says.

The diploma is informed by international best practice and lived experiences of obesity. The programme was co-designed with representatives from the Irish Coalition for People Living with Obesity to reflect real-world experience, including interactions with healthcare, internalised stigma, barriers created by weight-centred narratives, and positive interventions and care.

“We need to shift the narrative around what success looks like in obesity care,” according to Dr Salas.

“It’s not about the number on the scales; it’s not about clothes size or looking a certain way. It is, and always should be, about feeling well, reducing pain or fatigue, improving physical functioning or mobility as well as increasing energy and capacity for daily activities of living. Obesity treatment indicators should focus on person-reported outcomes which research shows are primarily focused on improving quality-of-life, not just weight loss.”

With leadership, design, and tutor support from leading clinical experts in obesity, endocrinology, public health, health promotion, clinical psychology, and systems science, this programme empowers learners to develop advanced skills for the comprehensive assessment, management, and prevention of obesity across the life course.

The diploma was designed to bring clinical and public health perspectives together, exploring our understanding of the role each discipline must play. It is relevant for those working in public health and policy, as well as clinical care, across hospital and community settings. By integrating science, clinical management, and whole-systems thinking, the programme supports more connected, compassionate, and effective obesity prevention and care.

According to Module 2 Lead, Dr Cathy Breen, a Clinical Specialist Dietitian in Diabetes and Obesity: “One of the greatest challenges in obesity care is translating the science into everyday clinical practice. This programme helps clinicians develop the practical competencies needed to provide respectful, informed, and effective care. By strengthening skills in assessment, communication and management, we can reduce stigma, improve patient engagement and support better long‑term health.”

The RCPI Professional Diploma in Obesity Care is delivered fully online, with 60 continuing professional credits and weekly live tutorials. It consists of three connected modules, designed to integrate the science of obesity, different approaches to clinical management, and whole-systems thinking.

Module 1: Understanding obesity

This module explores:

▶ Biological, genetic, and metabolic mechanisms;

▶ The influence of environment and life course factors;

▶ How psychosocial determinants shape risk and outcomes;

▶ The evolution of obesity science;

▶ The role and limitations of BMI;

▶ The impact of stigma and bias.

Learners are trained to move beyond weight-centred approaches and towards patient-centred assessment that reflects real world complexity.

Module 2: Obesity management strategies

This module covers:

▶ Holistic assessment frameworks;

▶ Behavioural and psychological interventions;

▶ Nutritional approaches;

▶ Pharmacotherapy, including GLP1 receptor agonists;

▶ Bariatric surgery;

▶ Obesity care for children and adolescents;

▶ Monitoring of outcomes that matter to patients;

▶ Integrated multidisciplinary care pathways.

Faculty emphasise that effective obesity treatment targets health, not a numerical BMI category. Newer pharmacotherapies have been widely framed as “weight loss injections”, but the programme places them firmly within chronic disease treatment models.

Module 3: Obesity equity and health systems integration

This module examines:

▶ The interaction between prevention, treatment and management;

▶ The design of integrated, equitable care pathways;

▶ Stigma-free public health and health promotion communication;

▶ Whole-systems thinking;

▶ Policymaking and resource planning;

▶ Global frameworks and models of care including those from Ireland, Canada, and the WHO.

Learners are guided to move beyond individual level views of obesity and towards a systems-based, equity-focused approach that addresses structural drivers, reduces bias, and supports inclusive, coordinated care across health and community settings.

Given the direct relevance between obesity and chronic disease prevention, cardiometabolic care, and mental health, the programme is expected to be of interest across specialties. This programme will equip doctors, nurses, and health and social care professionals, working in clinical practice and public health settings, with evidence-based knowledge and skills to firmly move the dial on obesity care globally and lead positive improvements in their own healthcare and community settings.

According to Programme Co-Leads, Dr O’Connell and Prof Donal O’Shea, the diploma will help ensure our healthcare workforce is empowered to deliver modern, evidence-based care in obesity. “If we are serious about delivering compassionate, equitable and effective obesity care, we need a workforce equipped with the right knowledge and skills. This programme is a significant step toward that goal,” Dr O’Connell says.

Applications for the Professional Diploma in Obesity Care are now open to healthcare and public health professionals working across clinical, community, and policy settings.

Find out more at: https://landing.rcpi.ie/professional-diploma-in-obesity-care

This article was produced by the RCPI.