Training health professionals in smoking cessation

Training health professionals to provide smoking cessation interventions appears to have a measurable effect on professional performance. There was little evidence of an effect on patient outcome.

ACochrane review included 17 trials. Trained professionals were more likely to counsel patients about smoking, and to initiate other interventions such as setting a quit date, suggesting a follow-up appointment, and offering self-help materials. No evidence of an effect for continuous smoking abstinence following the intervention was found in 13 trials. Meta-analysis of 14 studies for point prevalence of smoking produced a statistically and clinically significant effect in favour of the intervention (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.55). Meta-analysis of 8 studies that reported continuous abstinence was also statistically significant (OR 1.60, 95% CI 1.26 to 2.03).

Comment: The quality of evidence is downgraded by imprecise results (few outcome events).

Ədəbiyyat

1. Lancaster T, Silagy C, Fowler G. Training health professionals in smoking cessation. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2000;(3):CD000214 [Review content assessed as up-to-date: 13 April 2012].