A case-based clinician training program for treating tobacco use in college students

The Effectiveness of Tobacco Dependence Education in Health Professional Students' Practice: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review to examine the effectiveness of tobacco dependence education versus usual or no tobacco dependence education on entry-level health professional student practice and client smoking cessation. Sixteen published databases, seven grey literature databases/websites, publishers’ websites, books, and pertinent reference lists were searched. Studies from 16 health professional programs yielded 28 RCTs with data on 4343 healthcare students and 3122 patients. Two researchers independently assessed articles and abstracted data about student knowledge, self-efficacy, performance of tobacco cessation interventions, and patient smoking cessation. All forms of tobacco were included. We did not find separate interventions for different kinds of tobacco such as pipes or flavoured tobacco. We computed effect sizes using a random-effects model and applied meta-analytic procedures to 13 RCTs that provided data for meta-analysis. Students’ counseling skills increased significantly following the 5As model (SMD = 1.03; 95% CI 0.07, 1.98; p < 0.00001, I² 94%; p = 0.04) or motivational interviewing approach (SMD = 0.90, 95% CI 0.59, 1.21; p = 0.68, I² 0%; p < 0.00001). With tobacco dependence counseling, 78 more patients per 1000 (than control) reported quitting at 6 months (OR 2.02; 95% CI 1.49, 2.74, I² = 0%, p = 0.76; p < 0.00001), although the strength of evidence was moderate or low. Student tobacco cessation counseling improved guided by the above models, active learning strategies, and practice with standardized patients.

Effectiveness of tobacco intervention education in health professional students' practice: a systematic review protocol

REVIEW QUESTION/OBJECTIVE

The objective of this review is to examine the effectiveness of entry-level education on smoking cessation or prevention and tobacco-dependence interventions on health professional student practice in promoting client health and on client smoking cessation behaviors.The specific review question to be addressed: what is the effect of entry-level tobacco dependence education on: (1) health professional students' knowledge and skills and self-efficacy, (2) performance of tobacco prevention and cessation interventions, and (3) client smoking cessation behaviors?

Faculty development in tobacco cessation: training health professionals and promoting tobacco control in developing countries

ISSUES

Cessation programs are essential components of comprehensive tobacco control. Health-care providers, especially physicians, have major responsibility for role modeling and promoting cessation. For successful, sustainable cessation training programs, countries need health-care professionals with knowledge and skills to deliver and teach tobacco cessation.

APPROACH

Review literature relevant to faculty development in tobacco cessation and discuss its strategic potential in tobacco control.

KEY FINDINGS

Faculty development is essential for sustainable tobacco cessation training programs, and a potentially powerful strategy to shift professional and societal norms towards cessation and support of comprehensive tobacco control in countries with normative tobacco use and underdeveloped tobacco control programs.

IMPLICATIONS

Medical faculty are in a key position to influence tobacco cessation and control programs because of their roles as educators and researchers, receptivity to innovation and, influence on competencies and standards for medical education and practice. Faculty development programs must consider the number and type of faculty, and tobacco cessation curricula needed. Faculty development fosters the ability to institutionalise cessation education for students and community practitioners. Academic faculty are often leaders in their professional disciplines, influential in establishing clinical practice standards, and technical experts for government and other key health organisations.

CONCLUSION

Training health-care professional faculty to become knowledgeable and committed to tobacco cessation opens opportunities to promote cessation and shift professional and societal norms away from tobacco use.

Cigarette smoking and associated health risks among students at five universities

INTRODUCTION

While most college students and other young adults who smoke fall into the light and intermittent smoking (LITS) category, they remain at risk for tobacco dependence and other adverse health effects from their smoking. This study examines smoking patterns, tobacco dependence, and other health variables among students at five universities to better understand how to identify and address tobacco use and related risks in a college health clinic setting.

METHODS

A health screening survey was completed by 2,091 college and graduate student volunteers seeking routine care at their university health centers or participating in a health class. Independent health variables were analyzed descriptively and in regression analyses with three levels of smoking (none, non-daily, and daily) and tobacco dependence to determine predictors and associated risks.

RESULTS

Nearly a quarter of students reported any current smoking, 41% of whom reported smoking less than 1 cigarette/day (cpd). Of the daily smokers, 80% smoked less than 10 cpd but 45% met criteria for tobacco dependence. Any smoking was associated with high-risk alcohol use, risky driving, relational abuse, depression, less exercise, and utilization of emergency and mental health services. In regression analyses, students who experienced depression had more than double the odds of being dependent smokers (odds ratio [OR] = 2.32), as did those who reported abuse (OR = 2.07) or sought mental health counseling (OR = 2.09).

DISCUSSION

Student health providers should be alerted to the multiple risks and comorbidities that occur among all smokers, including LITS, and intervene concurrently to help prevent or mitigate adverse outcomes that result from these conditions and behaviors.