Table 4 GP verbatim general comments about the shared-care approach for reducing obesity in children and its comorbidities

Positive

Excellent program! Very slow & clumsy software. Overall very good – thanks!

Loved the idea of ready access to specialist in the field & expertise setting goals

I loved the structured approach that the Sidebar encouraged

Overall very good program – should be instituted more broadly – so people don’t feel ‘threatened’ by having an overweight child and where they can seek help without feeling ‘labelled’

I think it is a good model for all aspects of medicine

Whilst it is difficult at the moment, shared consultations with the obesity team would be ideal. Again roll on NBN!

It was useful to have contact with the specialists when the progress was poor; it helped me feel confident in continuing the consultation

I think care focused with GP is much more accessible for patients but GPs problem need more skills training

I found the training useful and will continue

Negative

Overall, it was disappointing only one child was recruited and the software didn’t work – so I can’t really comment on such with limited experience

My criticisms of the Sidebar are: 1) Need a widescreen, 2) actual program was clumsy, 3) never got the printing to work (didn’t really fuss me), 4) S…L…O…W, interrupted consultations, and 5) worth pursing but definitely need better software