Uncovering Gaps in Obesity Medicine Competencies: Insights from Ten U.S. Medical Schools
Abstract
Competency-based obesity medicine education is critically needed in undergraduate medical training, as emphasized by the Association of American Medical Colleges. Using a competency-based framework, we identified key gaps in obesity education across ten diverse U.S. medical schools. Each institution formed a working group to conduct a gap analysis of the curriculum based on 32 obesity medicine competencies recognized by the obesity medicine fellowship council. The least-addressed domains were Practice-Based Learning and Improvement and Systems-Based Practice, accounting for nine of the ten least-covered competencies. Additional gaps were noted in clinical skills and bias awareness. Most schools were relying on passive teaching methods and limited assessment. Findings highlight opportunities to develop shared, scalable resources to strengthen and standardize obesity medicine education nationwide. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-026-02646-2.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Obesity and Health Practices
Bariatric Surgery and Outcomes
Innovations in Medical Education
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Medical Science Educator
- Publisher
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC
- Volume
- 36
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 539–544
- Publication date
- 24 January 2026
- Language
- EN