1591-P: Telehealth vs. In-Person Versions of a Diabetes Distress–Reducing Intervention for Teens

Introduction and Objective: Diabetes Distress (DD) among teens with T1D is common and associated with suboptimal psychosocial and glycemic outcomes. Our team previously completed an efficacy trial of an in-person, group-based intervention (Supporting Teen Problem Solving; STePS) to build resilience and reduce teen DD. Our current pilot hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial compares in-person vs. telehealth versions of STePS in real-world settings. Methods: Six geographically distinct diabetes centers randomly assigned teens to one of three groups: STePS in-person, STePS telehealth or Diabetes Education Control via telehealth. Linear mixed effects models were conducted to compare STePS in-person, STePS telehealth, and DE on resilience, DD, and TIR from baseline to post-intervention and from post- to 6-month follow-up. Results: 125 teens were randomized (In-Person, N=44;Telehealth, N=44; Control, N=37). 51% identified as female. 18% were Latine, 16% Black, 60% White. 39% had public aid. Of those randomized, 21 assigned to in-person dropped mostly due to distance and time demands, 8 from telehealth and 3 from education control. There were no statistically significant differences based on gender, race, ethnicity or insurance between those who dropped and those who participated. Distance to the intervention site differed, in that those who dropped from in-person lived an average of 54.54 miles away. Telehealth versus control group comparisons showed a main effect of time with a reduction in DD (B=-6.7, p=0.2) and marginally significant increase in resilience (B= 2.4, p=.08) from post- to 6-month follow-up combined across groups. Those who completed in-person STePS had higher DD at baseline compared to control, which did not change over time. There were no differences in resilience, DD or TIR for STePs in person versus via telehealth, p0.5. Conclusion: Telehealth results in significantly less dropouts, and there were no differences between telehealth and in-person STePS, with preliminary evidence suggesting telehealth improves resilience and DD outcomes. Disclosure J. Weissberg-Benchell: Consultant; Ended; Sanofi. J. Shapiro: Research Support; Current; American Diabetes Association, Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, Eli Lilly and Company. S. Powers: None. J. Ellis: None. J. Pierce: None. M. Feldman: None. T. Drossos: None. E. O'Donnell: Consultant; Current; Eddii Inc. J. Raymond: None. M.A. Harris: None. A. Grimmett: None. G.V. Memba: None. M. Bennett: None. C. Sayegh: None. M.L. Boeh: None. L.S. Kondic: None. M. Miller: None. G. Ding: None. G. Rodriguez-Gonzalez: None. K.A. McMullen: None. R. Urena: None. Funding American Diabetes Association (9-23-ICTSBMH-11), Breakthrough T1D (5-SRA-2024-1579-M-B)