Learning Objectives: Describe steps in implementing a hospital-wide smoking cessation project to assist patients who smoke
Abstract:
Problem/Objective:
To implement a hospital-wide smoking cessation intervention to identify patients who smoke and provide cessation assistance. The intervention is designed to be accessible to all patients, applicable in a variety of settings, and easy for clinicians with various levels of experience to use. We delineate steps in the implementation process.
Methods: a) Build a multidisciplinary team of dedicated clinicians and administrative personnel to plan and coordinate overall project; b) develop and pilot test a brief smoking assessment questionnaire for in- and out-patients that incorporates the Clinical Practice Guideline 5A’s; c) train one clinician to become a certified Tobacco Treatment Specialist who can receive referrals and provide in-house cessation treatment; d) solicit and educate healthcare professionals (e.g. clinicians, pharmacists, social workers) to become hospital cessation “experts” who will train other hospital employees; e) identify nurse liaisons who will support the project and promote operational aspects in their respective units; f) enlist and educate interpreter services to translate questionnaire and assist counseling to ensure equal access to cessation assistance for the immigrant community; g) assign the lead role in identifying smokers and advising patients to stop smoking to the admitting nurse/physician (in-patients) and the support staff/clinician (out-patients) teams; h) provide on-going educational programs for clinicians on effective brief counseling techniques and prescribing pharmacological therapy; i) collaborate with an existing extramural cessation program to simplify patient referral; j) obtain funding from health care insurers support education and implementation efforts.
Results: NA
Conclusions: We propose a working blueprint that may be help other institutions embark on smoking cessation initiatives.
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Back to Cessation, Nicotine, and the Science of Addiction
Back to The 2003 National Conference on Tobacco or Health (December 10-12, 2003)