Virtual Weight Management Shared Medical Visit

The investigators decided not to implement the research but instead to conduct a quality improvement project to focus on the practice of shared medical appointments (SMAs) and how to optimize them for clinical practice.

Culinary medicine has emerged which provides the practical application of nutrition education through experiential learning. Studies have shown that patients with metabolic syndrome who underwent a series of classes that featured nutrition recommendations and cooking classes had weight loss, and improved cardiac health and blood sugar management. Given the increasing focus on providing remote experiences to minimize contact and risk of infection with Sars-COV2, this pilot study at Boston Medical Center (BMC) will integrate a physician consultation, interactive didactic presentations, nutritious cooking and mind- body exercises. Patients with obesity and metabolic syndrome can attend a virtual shared medical visit series co-taught by a registered dietician and chef and an endocrinologist and weight management specialist. Data will be collected in the form of surveys, phone interviews, chart review, and home monitoring to test both the feasibility of running such an intervention virtually and to explore whether attending this one month program with weekly remote classes/visits improves vitals including weight and blood blood pressure and other small habit changes in patients.

Culinary medicine, Teaching kitchens, Virtual shared medical appointments (SMA), Mind body exercises, Social Determinants of Health (SDoH)

Participants will participate in virtual shared medical appointments that utilize the teaching kitchen

Recruitment rates will be calculated by taking the number of participants enrolled over the number eligible to participate in the program

An investigator created questionnaire will be used to collect information about facilitators for program participation

An investigator created questionnaire will be used to collect information about barriers to program participation

An investigator created questionnaire will be used to collect information about knowledge of healthy foods

An investigator created questionnaire will be used to collect information about nutritional food intake behaviours

Participants will check blood pressure at home with home blood pressure cuff and record the systolic and diastolic results on home diary

Participants diagnosed with diabetes will use a home glucometer to measure fasting blood glucose levels

Participants will weigh themselves at home and record their weight in a study diary. The BMI will be calculated using the formula BMI= kg/m2 where kg is a person's weight in kilograms and m2 is a person's height in meters squared.

Inclusion Criteria: English speaking BMI => 30 Must have documented measured blood pressure, weight, height in the 12 months prior to the intervention Enrolled in Boston Medical Center's (BMC's) Food Pantry Program Exclusion Criteria: Patients with advanced dementia or uncontrolled psychiatric disease Uncontrolled medical illness including severe hypertension, recent acute coronary syndrome, active malignancy or other condition that would make the subject unable to complete the study procedures