Do Pediatricians Practice What They (Should) Preach? A National Survey of Pediatricians' Personal Health Practices

Karen G O'Connor ¹, Avrum Katcher ² and Hannah Sherman ³. ¹Division of Health Policy Research, American Academy of Pediatrics, Elk Grove Village, IL; ²Department of Pediatrics, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ and ³Physician Wellness Special Interest Group, American Academy of Pediatrics, Elk Grove Village, IL.

 

Background: Maintaining good personal health is important to pediatricians in order to fulfill both patient care and personal responsibilities. Previous research indicates physicians generally choose healthy personal behaviors; however, little is known about pediatricians? health habits.

 

Objective: To examine pediatricians? personal health-related behaviors and identify factors contributing to or inhibiting self care.

 

Design/Methods: National random sample, mailed Periodic Survey of American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) U.S. members, April-September 2003; response rate=63%; n=1020. A logit model was used to measure association with adherence to a majority of listed healthy behaviors.

 

Results: Overall, only 36% of pediatricians report following at least 10 of 13 listed health behaviors (~75%) recommended by national guidelines. Fewer than half of pediatricians report consuming USDA-recommended servings of fruits/vegetables (44%) and low-fat meals (46%) > 3 times per week, and only 35% say they exercise >3 times per week. About 1 in 5 pediatricians do not have a personal physician and have not had a physical examination, cancer or other screening test within the last 3 years. Nearly all pediatricians report always using a safety belt (93%), while 72% always use a bicycle helmet. Seventy percent rate their health as very good or excellent compared to 57% of working-age adults nationally. Multivariate analysis identified the primary predictors of following 10 or more of the 13 listed health behaviors as age >44 years (OR 1.81, 95% CI 1.35-2.44), female gender (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.02-1.85), and working part-time (OR 1.92, 95% CI 1.30-2.83); having minor children at home had no effect. Feeling stress balancing work and personal responsibilities is negatively associated with following most recommendations (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.54-0.96).

 

Conclusions: Most pediatricians make healthy choices regarding personal safety and health screenings; however, many do not follow nutrition and exercise recommendations. Adherence to a majority of healthy behaviors is associated with being older, female, working fewer hours, and ability to balance work and personal life.