Pamela Masella, DO1, Devon Collins, MPH, CPH2, Chang Liu, PhD, MA2, Erica Emery, MS2, Rajev Nain, MD1, Hamid Pourshojae, DO1, Amir Moazzez, MD1, Joseph Greene, MD1. 1Inova Fair Oaks Hospital, 2Inova Fairfax Hospital
INTRODUCTION: Bariatric surgery candidates have the opportunity to research bariatric surgeons and hospitals prior to scheduling their elective surgery. Pre-operative information sessions are important tools for bariatric surgeons to provide patient education while increasing their patient population. Online education is becoming increasingly popular, but its utility over in-person education is uncertain. Our objective was to compare patients attending the two most commonly used educational formats: online (webinars) and in-person (seminars) and determine which were more likely to undergo bariatric surgery.
METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 2,700 patients who attended pre-operative information sessions from January 2014 to December 2016 by reviewing data maintained by the Obesity, Prevention, Policy and Management (OPPM) Database from our institution. The patients were divided into two groups: those who attended an in-person session (n = 785) and those who attended an online session (n = 1,915). The proportion of patients who went on to have bariatric surgery was compared between the two groups. To categorize the study sample, patient demographics, surgeon providing the information session, and procedure performed were compared between groups. Multivariate logistic regression model was applied to compare the effectiveness of in-person session and online session.
RESULTS: Of 2,700 patients analyzed, 71% attended online information sessions (77% female, mean age 42). The remaining 29% attended in-person information sessions (73% female, mean age 46). Analysis found that 21.1% of patients who attended online information sessions went on to have a bariatric surgical procedure, while 32.6% of patients who attended in-person sessions went on to have a bariatric surgical procedure. After controlling for differences in age and gender, results of multivariate logistic regression analysis indicate that patients who attended in-person sessions were 71% more likely to have a bariatric surgical procedure than patients who attended an online session (adjusted OR 1.71; 95% CI: 1.40-2.10; P<0.001).
CONCLUSION: Internet-based training is rapidly becoming a commonly used tool for pre-operative education in bariatric surgery and many other fields. Multiple studies have demonstrated that internet-based training may be as effective as other forms of education. While online education may be convenient, our results suggest that in-person training should not be abandoned as an educational platform.
Presented at the SAGES 2017 Annual Meeting in Houston, TX.
Abstract ID: 85186
Program Number: P325
Presentation Session: iPoster Session (Non CME)
Presentation Type: Poster
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