Facing the Obesity Crisis – Why Simulation Training Has to Evolve

Lee Quickmire
Jun 13
3 min read

The statistics are no longer creeping — they’re galloping.

Recent Parliamentary data (Commons Library Research Briefing, 2025) has laid bare just how deep the obesity challenge now runs across the UK healthcare system:

64% of adults in England are overweight or obese
Over 70% of those aged 35-74 carry excess weight
Childhood obesity rising fastest in deprived areas, with up to 30% obesity rates in Year 6 pupils in some regions
Severe inequalities linked to deprivation, disability, and ethnicity

For those of us involved in patient care, these aren’t just national statistics — they’re tomorrow’s patients. Patients who require more advanced moving & handling, bespoke equipment solutions, specialised manual handling skills, and complex multi-agency care planning.

This isn't a problem for ‘the future of care’ — this is now.

Traditional Training Is No Longer Enough

For too long, training in manual handling and patient care has operated in the world of generic environments: wide open spaces, textbook hoisting, well-behaved patients, minimal real-world pressure.

But the emerging bariatric challenge doesn't present in wide open spaces.

It happens in 2.4m-wide bedrooms.
It happens in terraced housing.
It happens when 2 staff are forced to do a job designed for 4 because of staffing shortages.
It happens when deconditioned patients with multiple co-morbidities become stuck between acute care, social care and discharge pathways.

The knowledge, competence, and clinical awareness needed to safely care for this growing group of patients cannot be learnt fully in theory alone.

Simulation-Based Mastery: The Centre of Excellence Approach

This is where the Jeenie Centre of Excellence moves beyond the traditional.

Our advanced training doesn’t just teach how to move a patient — it teaches:

How to think through patient pathways
How to plan for complex home discharges
How to evaluate confined space evacuation
How to adapt equipment to patient need rather than force-fit the patient to the equipment
How to assess risk and build practical care plans in live scenarios

With fully adaptable mock environments — including narrow staircases, true-to-life bathrooms, hospital ward layouts, and bariatric-focused rehab spaces — clinicians, therapists, coordinators and manual handling leads can train and problem-solve in genuine complexity.

The growing demand for simulation-based education has been referenced in multiple frameworks, including:

Health Education England (HEE) – Simulation-Based Education 2022
NHS England Long Term Workforce Plan 2023 – Advanced Practice and Complex Care Pathways
Commons Library Research Briefing: Obesity Statistics, 2025 (Stiebahl)

How This Links Directly to the National Obesity Challenge

As the 2025 Parliamentary Obesity Briefing outlines, we are seeing:

A clear north-south divide with some Northern Trusts showing 75%+ adult excess weight prevalence.
Deprived local authorities where Year 6 child obesity exceeds 45%.
Less than 5,000 bariatric surgeries performed annually — meaning frontline staff are expected to deliver safe care for thousands of high-risk patients who will not receive surgical interventions.

For NHS Trusts, ICBs, and care providers, this presents both a clinical and a governance risk if staff are not equipped to handle the complexities these patients bring.

The Jeenie Centre of Excellence directly helps services bridge the gap between rising patient complexity and limited real-world training opportunities.

✅ CPD-accredited courses
✅ Bespoke complex scenario days
✅ Confined space evacuations
✅ Bariatric mobilisation & rehabilitation simulations
✅ Live equipment demonstrations across multiple manufacturers
✅ Care pathway scenario planning

The Bigger Picture — Risk Mitigation, Patient Safety, Staff Retention

The goal isn’t just about avoiding litigation or regulatory breaches (though these matter).

It’s about:

Keeping staff in work: Preventing career-ending injuries caused by incorrect or poorly executed handling.
Protecting patients: Ensuring dignity, safe care, and reducing unnecessary hospital admissions caused by failed community packages.
Saving money: Reducing repeat admissions, avoidable falls, and equipment misuse costs.

If our healthcare system is going to meet the challenge laid bare in the latest government data — this level of training is no longer a luxury, it’s an operational necessity.

References:

Stiebahl, S. (2025). Obesity Statistics. Commons Library Research Briefing, House of Commons.
NHS Digital (2022). Health Survey for England 2022: Obesity Data.
NHS Digital (2023). National Child Measurement Programme 2023/24.
Health Education England (2022). Simulation-Based Education Framework.
NHS England (2023). Long Term Workforce Plan.