Purpose: The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends that adults at risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) be offered or referred to intensive behavioral counseling interventions to promote a healthful diet and physical activity for CVD prevention. We assessed primary care providers' (PCPs) awareness of local physical activity-related behavioral counseling services, whether this awareness was associated with referring eligible patients, and the types and locations of services to which they referred.
Design: Cross-sectional survey.
Setting: Primary care providers practicing in the United States.
Subjects: 1256 respondents.
Measures: DocStyles 2016 survey assessing PCPs' awareness of and referral to physical activity-related behavioral counseling services.
Analysis: Calculated prevalence and adjusted odds ratios (aORs).
Results: Overall, 49.9% of PCPs were aware of local services. Only 12.6% referred many or most of their at-risk patients and referral was associated with awareness of local services (aOR = 2.81, [95% confidence interval: 1.85-4.25]). Among those referring patients, services ranged from a health-care worker within their practice or group (25.4%) to an organized program in a medical facility (41.2%). Primary care providers most often referred to services located outside their practice or group (58.1%).
Conclusion: About half of PCPs were aware of local behavioral counseling services, and referral was associated with awareness. Establishing local resources and improving PCPs' awareness of them, especially using community-clinical linkages, may help promote physical activity among adults at risk for CVD.
Keywords: cardiovascular disease; counseling; physical activity; primary health care.