For years we have treated obesity as if there were only two options. You either be more disciplined or you will be handed a prescription for a weight loss medicine. Reality has shown that neither has been enough.
Two patients walk into different practices on the same day. Both are prescribed the same new generation weight loss medicine. Both lose weight during the first few months. From the outside, their stories appear almost identical.
After a year one patient has regained much of the weight. Appointments have become less frequent. Motivation has faded. Old habits have quietly returned and the excitement of those first few months has disappeared. The second patient looks very different. They are stronger, more active, sleeping better, eating differently and moving with confidence. They haven’t just lost weight, they’ve changed the way they live.
Turns out it isn’t just the medication that makes the difference. It was everything that happened after the prescription.
As generic weight loss medicines move closer to becoming available in South Africa, much of the conversation has centred on affordability, access and clinical effectiveness. Those are important discussions, but they miss a much bigger story.
These medicines may help more people begin their weight loss journey. They cannot help them finish it.
Medication can reduce appetite. It can’t teach someone how to prepare healthier meals after years of unhealthy habits. It cannot rebuild muscles weakened by inactivity. It also doesn’t help someone overcome emotional eating, regain confidence after years of struggling with obesity or navigate the inevitable setbacks that come with changing lifelong behaviours.
This is where the team of health professionals become indispensable.
A dietitian helps transform short-term dietary changes into sustainable eating patterns. The physiotherapist or biokineticist helps patients rediscover movement that feels achievable rather than intimidating. Psychologists help patients understand the emotional and behavioural patterns that often sit beneath obesity. An occupational therapist helps reshape daily routines so healthier choices become part of everyday life instead of another impossible goal. Individually, each profession contributes something valuable. Together, they turn treatment into transformation.
This reflects something much bigger than the arrival of a new medicine. Healthcare itself is changing.
Obesity is increasingly recognised as a chronic disease that requires ongoing management, just like diabetes or hypertension. Success is no longer measured by how much weight a patient loses in the first few months, but by whether they are healthier years later.
How are you orienting your practice to work in a multi-disciplinary environment, or collaborating with peers to better serve your patients? Let us know, we’d love to feature your practice.