Learning Objectives: Describe how the PHS Clinical Practice Guideline can be tailored, using a case-based format, for training health care providers to treat tobacco use and dependence in college students, and explain how health care providers can use "teachable moments" in the student health center to motivate students to make a quit attempt.
Abstract: Problem: Tobacco use among college students and other young adults (18-24 yo) increased throughout the 1990s, and prevalence in this population exceeds that of all other adult age groups. Young adults are initiating smoking at higher rates and up to 40% of college students who smoke either initiate smoking or progress from occasional to regular smoking during their college years. There is little information about how well the PHS Clinical Practice Guideline addresses the cessation needs of this population.
Methods: A tobacco cessation training course for student health service providers was developed as one component of an NCI-funded study which is testing a comprehensive intervention to reduce smoking among college students on 30 campuses in the Pacific Northwest. Using qualitative data from 40 elicitation interviews of students at participating colleges, six composite case studies were created to illustrate typical student use patterns, motivations to quit and barriers to cessation experienced by this unique population.
Results: Using case studies to illustrate the Clinical Practice Guideline provides an engaging and practical framework for training student health providers to address tobacco use among college students in a campus health care setting. By utilizing “teachable moments” in the delivery of routine and acute health care, providers can highlight short-term health risks associated with tobacco use in the context of the students’ presenting problem.
Conclusions: The student health center setting provides an opportunity for practitioners to identify and help motivate students to attempt quitting tobacco. A tailored cessation training may help providers optimize this opportunity.
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