Micro-Clinic Obesity and Metabolic Risk Prevention Program

The potential to harness the propagating power of social networks for chronic disease treatment and management, such as for diabetes and obesity, is an emerging area in epidemiology and clinical research. Social induction for disease management has been effectively leveraged for disease management, but we have not carefully disaggregated of different layers and modalities of social network effects in this context. This study will test and demonstrate this through a novel randomized trial.

The randomized design is comprised of 2 arms. 1) Intervention Group: This arm takes part in a 10-month (9-month for Phase 2, cycles 1 and 2) diabetes, weight, and cardiovascular disease education and management program in combination with the microclinic social support model. A microclinic is a support group of 2-6 individuals from the same social network who learn how to manage their disease together. 2) Control Group: This is a control arm with observational parallel assessments of metabolic and lifestyle risk factors alone (implemented in Phase 1 and 2, cycles 1 and 2). Each arm will take part in a 6-month follow-up. The investigators also aim to study the intervention effects of social networks in improving lifestyle risk factors on a small sample of Phase 1 controls in a repeated measures design. Observational controls with 7 repeated measures in Phase 1 (pre-intervention) will receive the 9-month diabetes, weight, and cardiovascular disease education and management program with microclinic social support model condensed in a 4-6 months program. The controls in this cycle will also receive 17 medical screenings during the intervention, and 6-month follow-up (post-intervention).

Aim 1- (Phase 1 and 2, Cycles 1 & 2)

To evaluate the efficacy of the microclinic intervention group versus observational control in improving lifestyle factors and metabolic outcome.

Aim 2- (Phase 2, Cycle 3)

To examine the effect of the microclinic intervention by comparing pre- and post measures among those who were first controls in Phase 1 and then participated in the microclinic intervention Phase 2, Cycle 3.

AIM 3- (Phases 1 & 2, cycles 1, 2, and 3)

To differentiate the modalities of social network effects: direct causal induction versus homophilly, and to determine the extent of long-term temporal cross-propagating effects between-persons in a microclinic group.

Inclusion criteria

• Must be enrolled in our community health program.
• Over the age of 18
• BMI of 30 or higher, or
• BMI of 25 or higher AND must be diagnosed with at least one additional risk factor 1) type 2 diabetes, 2) high blood pressure, and/or 3) high cholesterol
• For those who will be participating in the cross-over sub-sample, they must have previously participated in Phase 1 as subject of the control group, or

Exclusion criteria

• Patients who are not enrolled in the our community health education program (applies to Phase 1 only)
• Are not able to provide informed consent for themselves
• Under the age of 18
• Has undergone weight loss surgery
• Pregnant women*