The digital weight management programme offers online access to weight management services to people living with obesity who also have a diagnosis of either diabetes, hypertension, or both. 

It is a 12-week offer with three levels of support available and is designed to give service users a personalised level of intervention to support them to manage their weight and improve longer-term health outcomes.

The three levels of support aim to reduce health inequalities by providing additional coaching for groups who are less likely to complete behavioural and lifestyle programmes:

• Level one: access to digital content only
• Level two: access to digital content plus 50 minutes of human coaching over the 12 weeks
• Level three: access to digital content plus 100 minutes of human coaching over the 12 weeks.

Currently, general practices and community pharmacies can refer members of the public to the NHS Digital Weight Management Programme. Further information is available on the Information for general practices web page and the Information for community pharmacies web page.

Social Prescribing Link Workers

Referrals from practice clinicians to social prescribing link workers are encouraged where the patient may benefit from a discussion about readiness for a weight management programme. Social prescribing link workers can also support patients who may be digitally excluded and connect with local offers for digital support.

Resources

See Downloads for the following:

• weight management infographics outlining the various programmes that are available in each borough
• NCL digital weight management programme early adopter practice training webinar
• EMIS resource pack, FAQs and toolkits.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusions

Referrals to the programme are only for people that meet the following criteria:

• aged 18+
• body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more (adjusted to ≥27.5 for people from black, asian and ethnic minority backgrounds)
• have a diagnosis of diabetes (type 1 or type 2), hypertension or both.

Exclusions

Any person that meets any of the following exclusion criteria should not be referred to the programme:

• recorded as having moderate or severe frailty
• is pregnant
• has an active eating disorder
• has had bariatric surgery in the last two years
• people for whom a weight management programme is considered to pose greater risk of harm than benefit.

For people aged 80+, the referrer will need to confirm on the referral form that a weight management programme is considered likely to pose greater benefit than harm.

How to Refer