A Smoking Reduction and Cessation Program With Registered Nurses: Findings and Implications for Community Health Nursing

Abstract

A smoking reduction and cessation program was implemented with registered nurses in 3 Canadian provinces. Nurses (n = 117) participated in either an 8-week group or self-directed program using a resource specifically designed for nurses. Questionnaires were administered prior to and at the end of the 8-week interventions and at 6 and 12 months postintervention. Statistically significant changes at 8 weeks in nurses' smoking practices were found on the number of nurses continuing to smoke, mean number of cigarettes smoked, and movement in the stage of behavioral change. Attrition and variation in patterns of quitting over the 12-month study period made assessing participants' longer term outcomes difficult. This study highlights the complexity of assisting nurses to quit smoking and of implementing and evaluating a program based on accepted community health models of practice.

Nurses, smoking, and the workplace

“…Although nurses have contributed to the knowledge of the morbidity and mortality caused by tobacco use among women through their participation in the Nurses Health Study (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2001), there have been limited efforts to assist nurses with smoking cessation (Chalmers et al, 2001;Gritz et al, 1988;Rowe & Clark, 1999). One research group (Gritz et al, 1988), in a study of nurses' workplace smoking and quitting (n ¼ 149 in 15 acute care hospitals in Los Angeles, reported a 12.7% point prevalence quit rate at 12 months.…”

“…One research group (Gritz et al, 1988), in a study of nurses' workplace smoking and quitting (n ¼ 149 in 15 acute care hospitals in Los Angeles, reported a 12.7% point prevalence quit rate at 12 months. Chalmers et al (2001) conducted an 8-week support group, community-based intervention for Canadian nurses (n ¼ 217). Their intervention resulted in increased readiness to quit and confidence in ability to quit in the experimental group in comparison to the control group (self-help booklet).…”

Psychometric evaluation of the Chinese version of the Fagerstrom Tolerance Questionnaire as a measure of cigarette dependence

“…Assessment of nicotine dependence is a critical component of nursing strategies for smoking cessation (Lindell & Reinke 1999, Stevens & Munoz 2004. The Fagerstrom Tolerance Questionnaire (FTQ) (Fagerstrom 1978) is a self-report measure of smoking behaviour used worldwide in both clinical treatment and research to evaluate the physiological dependence of cigarette smokers on nicotine (Chalmers et al 2001, Galvin et al 2001, Chang 2004, Chou et al 2004.…”

Cigarette Smoke Extract Suppresses Human Dendritic Cell Function Leading to Preferential Induction of Th-2 Priming

“…In addition, smokers have increased vulnerability to several infections and are predisposed to allergic airway diseases (5)(6)(7). These studies suggest that by altering host immunity, smoking enables tumor cells and infectious pathogens to evade appropriate immune responses.…”