BRIDGE: Improving Access to Obesity Care

BRIDGE is a new NHS obesity management programme designed to make it easier for people to access the support they need to manage their weight and improve their health.

By combining digital tools with clinical and face-to-face support, BRIDGE aims to improve access to care, reduce health inequalities and help people across Birmingham, the Black Country and Solihull make positive changes to their health and wellbeing.

GP surgeries will proactively identify patients who could benefit from obesity support and refer them for further obesity care, without requiring extra steps from the patient or GP.

The programme brings together NHS organisations, digital health providers, academic partners and community organisations to develop a more joined-up approach to obesity care, helping reduce health inequalities and widen access to support.

What does BRIDGE mean for patients?

BRIDGE brings different types of support together, helping people access care that meets their needs and preferences.

Support may include:

Advice and support for healthier living, including food, physical activity, sleep and overall wellbeing.
Clinical assessment and weight-management support, helping people understand the options available to them.
Weight-management medicines, where clinically appropriate.
Flexible ways to access support, including online, by telephone or face to face.
Ongoing support, including help to maintain progress after the main course of support has ended.

The aim is to make support easier to access and provide a more joined-up experience for people using obesity services.

Who is BRIDGE for?

BRIDGE focuses on patients in priority groups and those who may currently face greater barriers to accessing obesity services. These include:

Teenagers aged 13 to 17 and young adults under 40.
People living with obesity and a serious mental illness.
People who need to lose weight before orthopaedic surgery, such as a hip or knee replacement.

By proactively identifying people who could benefit from support, BRIDGE aims to help eligible patients access appropriate obesity care more easily.

Patients will be contacted about the programme and, with their permission, referred by their GP. Taking part is voluntary, and patients can decline or change their mind at any time without affecting their other care.

Who is delivering BRIDGE?

BRIDGE brings together partners from across the NHS, research, digital health and community sectors. Each partner has a role in helping the programme deliver accessible, effective and inclusive support.

NHS Birmingham and Solihull and NHS Black Country Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) lead the programme across the two areas, working with partners to improve local obesity care.

Healum provides the digital platform, helping connect people with appropriate support and providing the programme website.

DDM Health delivers day-to-day wraparound care and support, both online and in person.

Health Innovation West Midlands project manages the programme and facilitates collaboration between partners. HIWM will also support performance monitoring and knowledge mobilisation by sharing learning and insights from the programme.

University of Birmingham independently evaluates the programme to understand how well it is working and the difference it makes.

Community Connexions works with local people and communities to help ensure the programme is inclusive and responsive to people's needs.

Together, these partners aim to develop an approach that combines clinical expertise, digital innovation and community involvement to improve access to obesity care.

How will patients and communities be involved?

Listening to people with lived experience of obesity is important to ensuring that services are accessible, inclusive and responsive to local needs.

Community Connexions will work with local people to help ensure BRIDGE works for everyone. The programme will also use evaluation and learning to understand people's experiences, identify what works well and inform improvements.

The University of Birmingham will evaluate the programme's effectiveness, including through the use of anonymised data. Information will be handled in line with the programme's privacy arrangements, and patients will be asked before their information is shared or they are referred to a new service.

Learning from the programme will help partners understand how digital and face-to-face support can improve access to obesity care and inform the future development of services.