Factors Associated with Weight Loss Within a Blended Virtual and Face-to-Face MOVE!® Program: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

Obesity is highly prevalent in the U.S. veteran population. The present study aimed to examine predictors of weight loss within VA Connecticut Healthcare System’s (VACT) behavioral weight management program, MOVE!®. Participants were 159 veterans receiving care at VACT who enrolled in MOVE!. Participants attended an average of 8.8/16 MOVE! sessions and had an average 5.3 lb (2.1%) total body weight loss; 15.1% of participants lost a clinically significant amount of weight (>5%). The number of sessions that participants attended was associated with weight loss, such that participants who attended 7–12 sessions lost an average of 7.2 lbs and participants who attended 13+ sessions lost an average of 8.6 lbs, whereas participants who attended 7 or fewer sessions lost an average of 1.4 lbs. Teleconferencing in from a community-based outpatient clinic (CBOC) location was also associated with weight loss, such that participants who were at a CBOC lost an average of 7.5 lbs, whereas participants at the main campus lost an average of 3.5 lbs. Results from this single-site observation study suggest a dose-response relationship within MOVE!, where participants who attended more sessions lost more weight. Teleconferencing in from CBOCs was an effective manner to deliver MOVE!.