Background

Despite higher rates of obesity in the Latinx population, disparities in access to care exist that lead to fewer patients receiving life-saving metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS). Informed decision making about MBS among Spanish-speaking Latinx patients may be undermined by most preoperative educational programs being conducted in English. To address these educational barriers, we implemented a Spanish-focused bariatric surgery education program (SFBEP) that included virtual Spanish education sessions and support groups as well as Spanish-speaking navigators, nutritionists, and psychologists. The current study evaluated whether the proportion of Spanish-speaking attendees at the MBS educational session increased after SFBEP implementation.

Methods

We identified patients whose preferred language was Spanish and attended a MBS education session conducted in English from 03/2019-02/2020 (all in-person). We compared this cohort to the Spanish-speaking patients who attended a SFBEP (11/2020-10/2021, all virtual) during the first year of the program. Chi-square test compared the proportions of Spanish-speaking attendees before and after implementation.

Results

Prior to SFBEP implementation, 5% (43/822) of bariatric education session (BES) attendees were Spanish-speaking versus 13% (227/1724) after SFBEP implementation (p<0.0001).

Conclusions

Implementation of the SFBEP appeared to increase Spanish-speaking Latinx patient attendance. However, it is also possible that increased attendance may be due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic and related factors (e.g., virtual vs. in-person visits, easing of Medicaid requirements for bariatric surgery, media exposure to messages regarding obesity and COVID severity). Future studies will evaluate whether the SFBEP contributes to increased number of patients progressing to MBS and overall treatment satisfaction.