Waves Weight Management Clinic (Brighton & Hove)

What is the Weight Management Clinic?
 
Our specialist tier 3 weight management service works with children, young people and their families to help them to make positive changes to their eating and physical activity habits, which can result in them feeling healthier and happier.

Children and young people who are above a healthy weight are at greater risk of developing health complications in later life such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure. Our goal is to help children and young people to make healthy lifestyle changes so they can grow into healthy adults and reduce the likelihood of these health risks occurring.

We also aim to help children and young people with emotional difficulties related to their obesity, such as bullying, poor self-esteem and negative body image.

Making adjustments to a child’s eating and physical activity habits can be very challenging for parents/carers. We aim to support our families with setting personalised realistic goals, and we provide ongoing support with achieving those goals and overcoming their difficulties.

We are experienced in working with children and young people with additional needs and we often work together with other professionals across education, health and social care in order to provide a holistic personalised family-centred approach.
 
How does the Weight Management Clinic work?
 
Our families receive support from a multi-disciplinary team, which consists of a Specialist Weight Management Nurse, Dietician, Personal Trainer, Consultant Paediatrician, and Psychologist. We provide a combination of behavioural, dietetic and physical activity advice and manage the children’s and young people’s health needs related to their obesity.
 
The first appointment is with the Weight Management Nurse who will assess the child’s needs and plan an appropriate support package for the family. The Nurse is available for support throughout the family’s time with us and she will regularly review their progress to ensure that they are receiving support they need.
 
The Dietitian will assess the child's diet and provide practical advice on making positive changes.
 
The Personal Trainer will help parents/carers incorporate physical activity into their child’s day to day life and build their confidence. The activities are tailored to suit the child’s level of fitness and interests. The trainer will also keep the families informed about Active for Life programmes in their local area.
 
The family will be offered an appointment with a Consultant Paediatrician if their child is significantly above a healthy weight and if any associated medical problems are identified. We will ask for the child to have a blood test to determine any possible underlying causes for the child’s weight gain and to explore existing complications.

The Psychologist offers support with addressing emotional difficulties related to the child’s obesity.
 
The multi-disciplinary team will work with the whole family to set realistic, achievable goals, and support them with overcoming challenges and maintaining positive changes.