ABSTRACT
Background: A vast majority of the VA population is either overweight or obese, which is a serious health concern. Obesity care has been traditionally delivered via in-person clinics. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the delivery of care to be switched to virtual platforms Methods: To study the effectiveness of in-person versus virtual (telephone only) delivery of obesity care, which included behavioral therapy and pharmacotherapy, an observational study was designed to include participants who were either newly enrolled or had previously established care at the VA Move! program in Minneapolis for weight management between the years of 2017 to 2021. These participants were divided into two groups. A transition cohort (obtained in-person care from March 2019 to March 2020, then transitioned to virtual care). A new start cohort (enrolled after March 2020 with virtual care);this group was compared to a separate historical group which obtained in-person care between January 2019 to December 2020. Weight loss was accessed over a 9-month period in both cohorts. Results: The mean weight loss over 9 months was -6.4±18.1 lbs and -2.5±13.3 lbs in the in-person and virtual phases of the transition cohort, respectively, without any significant difference between the two phases (p=0.22). The mean weight loss over 9 months in the new start (virtual) cohort was -14.4±17.0 lbs compared to -16.7±21.0 lbs in the historical cohort, without any significant difference between the two groups (p=0.44). Conclusions: Weight loss with virtual-telephone care was comparable to in-person care in our weight management program.