Impact of Teaching Medical Students about Obesity in South Asians

Background: Obesity is a multifaceted condition influenced by genetic, lifestyle, and cultural factors. The prevalence of obesity has risen globally, with distinct challenges faced by South Asian populations in the UK, due to genetic predispositions and dietary shifts. This study evaluated the impact of an educational intervention designed for medical students to increase understanding of obesity in the South Asian community.Approach: Participants were recruited via the medical school online platform and signed written consent forms. The study did not require ethics approval. Participants completed a Likert confidence scale questionnaire before the small group teaching intervention, and then after it, to assess the impact of the session. Written free text comments after the session illustrated participant thoughts on the intervention and how well they felt the medical school taught on ethnic minority health. The dataset is a spreadsheet that records participants' responses to questionnaireEvaluation: The intervention significantly improved participant confidence in understanding and awareness of obesity in the South Asian community. Free text comments highlighted positive engagement and suggested areas for improvement. All participants believed their medical school lacked sufficient teaching on obesity in ethnic minorities and expressed an ardent desire for more teaching in this area.Implications: This study underscores the need for tailored undergraduate medical teaching on obesity in diverse ethnic groups, particularly South Asians. It highlights the inadequacies of a one-size-fits-all approach in addressing obesity within ethnic minority communities. Future work should explore the readiness of medical students across the UK to study obesity and the management of it in ethnic minorities.The data set includes the consent form and feedback form used for the study, as well as anonymised feedback data from the study. The Wilcoxon signed rank test is also included, as well as evidence that an ethics application was not needed for the study.

背景：肥胖是一种受遗传、生活方式与文化因素共同影响的多维度病症。当前全球肥胖患病率持续攀升，英国南亚裔（South Asian）群体面临独特的防控挑战，这与其遗传易感性及饮食结构转变密切相关。本研究针对面向医学生的肥胖教育干预方案展开评估，旨在提升其对南亚裔社区肥胖问题的认知水平。
研究方法：本研究通过医学院校在线平台招募受试者，所有参与者均签署书面知情同意书，且本研究无需获得伦理审查批准。研究前后分别采用Likert置信量表（Likert confidence scale）问卷，对受试者参与小组教学干预前后的认知自信程度进行测评。干预结束后，受试者需填写开放式文本评论，以反馈其对本次干预的看法，以及对医学院校在少数族裔健康领域教学质量的评价。本数据集为电子表格形式，记录了受试者对全部问卷的作答结果。
研究结果：本次干预显著提升了受试者对南亚裔社区肥胖问题的理解与认知自信程度。开放式文本评论既体现了参与者的积极参与度，也指出了本次干预可优化的方向。所有参与者均认为其所在医学院校在少数族裔肥胖相关教学方面存在明显不足，并强烈呼吁增设该领域的相关课程。
研究启示：本研究凸显了针对多元族裔群体（尤其是南亚裔群体）的肥胖主题本科医学教学的必要性，同时揭示了“一刀切”式教学模式在应对少数族裔社区肥胖问题时的局限性。后续研究可探索全英范围内医学生对少数族裔肥胖问题学习及临床管理的接受意愿。
本数据集涵盖本次研究使用的知情同意书、反馈问卷，以及经匿名化处理的受试者反馈数据；同时包含Wilcoxon符号秩检验（Wilcoxon signed rank test）的相关分析结果，以及本研究无需提交伦理审查申请的证明材料。