Tobacco use pattern and quitting behaviour among healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: Insights from a pan India online survey

Prevalence of tobacco use, legal awareness and control attitudes among healthcare students, professionals and staff: a multicentric study in India

BACKGROUND

Tobacco use poses a significant global health challenge, particularly within the healthcare sector. This study assessed tobacco use prevalence, legal awareness, control attitudes and the need for greater emphasis on tobacco control in healthcare curricula among professionals, students and staff in Eastern India, specifically in Bihar and Jharkhand.

METHODS

In July and August 2023, an extensive online survey was conducted across 24 tertiary healthcare institutions involving medical, dental and nursing students, as well as faculty, resident physicians, nursing professionals and support staff.

RESULTS

The study revealed that 15.9% of participants currently use tobacco, with 9.6% reporting daily use. Notably, non-users demonstrated higher awareness of tobacco-related laws compared to users. Multifactor logistic regression analysis identified several determinants of tobacco use including age, sex, marital status, occupation, family income and geographic origin. A significant finding was that less knowledge about tobacco laws correlated strongly with higher rates of tobacco use. Furthermore, regional variations were observed, with a lower prevalence of tobacco use in participants from southern states.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings underscore the necessity of integrating comprehensive tobacco education into healthcare curricula and reinforcing awareness campaigns to effectively mitigate tobacco use within this critical sector.

Factors associated with cessation of smoking in health professionals: a scoping review

BACKGROUND

Offering cessation support to health professionals who smoke to ensure optimal implementation of cessation support for patients is a key recommendation of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Article 14 guidelines. However, direct efforts to support this population to quit are limited. Although numerous articles on the topic of tobacco use among health professionals have been published, the factors associated with their own cessation have not been systematically synthesised.

OBJECTIVE

We sought to synthesise existing literature on the predictors and processes informing attitudes and beliefs of smoking health professionals' own cessation.

METHODS

A five-step methodological framework for scoping reviews was followed. We conducted a systematic search of EMBASE, PubMed, Web of Science, and PsycINFO databases, as well as Google Scholar for relevant articles. Titles, abstracts, and full texts were screened against predefined criteria: research published between 1990 and 2021, in English-language peer-reviewed journals; participants included doctors, nurses, medical, and student nurses who smoke.

RESULTS

The initial search yielded 120, 883 articles, with 27 selected for synthesis. Prevalence estimates and predictors of smoking behaviour have remained the primary focus of smoking health professional research. Few studies explicitly examined the relevant predictors of quit attempts and quit attempt success. There is evidence that age and work environment factors predict quit attempt success in some health professional groups. There is also some evidence of tobacco smoking stigma experiences among nurses and nursing students who smoke.

CONCLUSION

Although cessation support is desperately needed for health professionals who smoke, the evidence for factors predicting quit success remains limited. To better guide future research, first, more theoretical work is required to identify the relevant predictors. Second, these should be tested using prospective research designs that take a multi-focal perspective to clarify the targets for change.

The knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of hospital nurses on smoking cessation interventions: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Smoking is a major public health problem in Croatia. It is unknown to what extent nurses in Croatia use interventions for smoking cessation to help their patients. This study aimed to analyze the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of hospital nurses on smoking cessation interventions.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study in Zagreb, Croatia, in 2022 on a convenient sample of hospital nurses. We collected data with a questionnaire that included sociodemographic questions and questions about the frequency of implementation of 5 A's (Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, Arrange) interventions for smoking cessation during their work using the Helping Smokers Quit (HSQ) survey, participants' attitudes and knowledge about smoking cessation skills and the smoking status of the nurses.

RESULTS

There were 824 nurses employed in the targeted departments; 258 nurses participated in the study (response rate: 31%). Among them, 43% responded that they always ask patients about their use of tobacco products. Only 2.7% indicated that they always help the patient to stop smoking. Very few (2%) attended any training in the past two years about helping patients to quit smoking, and 82% never had such training. 44% of the included nurses were smokers. Nurses who smoked stated more frequently than nonsmokers they should not be role models for their patients by avoiding smoking (P 0.001). Additionally, patients were less frequently questioned about their inability to stop smoking by nurses who smoked than nurses who did not smoke (P = 0.010).

CONCLUSION

Even though smoking cessation interventions delivered by nurses were proven effective, such interventions are used by a small number of surveyed nurses. A small number of nurses have received training to help them support smokers in quitting. The high smoking prevalence among nurses may impact their attitudes and the implementation of workplace smoking cessation efforts.

Impact of COVID-19 lockdown on smoking and vaping: systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVES

COVID-19 and the implementation of lockdowns have impacted daily lives worldwide. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the impact of lockdowns on the smoking and vaping behaviours of adults during the pandemic.

STUDY DESIGN

This was a systematic review and meta-analysis.

METHODS

A systematic literature search was conducted up to 28 April 2022 in the following databases: PubMed, Embase and Web of Science.

RESULTS

In total, 77 studies met the inclusion criteria for this review. In 34 studies, an increase in smoking behaviour was reported for the majority of participants; however, in 21 and 18 studies, 'no change' and 'decrease' in smoking were the predominant responses, respectively. The results from the meta-analysis, which examined the change in the number of cigarettes smoked per day, showed no difference between the pre- and post-lockdown periods: 0.81 weighted mean difference (95% confidence interval, -0.59 to 2.21). Regarding vaping, three of seven studies reported an increase in smoking for the majority of participants, whereas 'no change' and 'decrease' were the predominant answers in the other four studies.

CONCLUSIONS

The results show that lockdowns led most participants to increase smoking/vaping, whereas a decrease or cessation of smoking/vaping was only reported in the minority of participants. Attention should be given to the non-communicable diseases that could arise as a result of the increase in smoking/vaping during lockdowns, and further research in this area is needed.