Intervening to Promote Tobacco Cessation Following Psychiatric Hospitalization
University of Texas at Austin
Summary
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of death and disability in the United States. People with psychiatric disorders consume almost half (44.3%) of all cigarettes smoked in the U.S. and have life spans more than 20 years shorter than the general population. Effective quit smoking treatments for people with psychiatric disorders are sorely needed. When patients are hospitalized for a psychiatric disorder, they are not allowed to smoke. This enforced period of no smoking creates what professionals call "a teachable moment". It provides an excellent opportunity to discuss the prospect of staying quit once the individual leaves the hospital. In ongoing research, the investigators have developed and tested a Sustained Care quit smoking intervention for smokers engaged in a psychiatric hospitalization. The intervention includes: 1) a professionally-led, motivational counseling session to encourage quitting smoking and increase awareness about available quit smoking resources, 2) a referral to the Texas Tobacco Quitline for phone-based, quit smoking counseling, and 3) an offer of 8 weeks of nicotine patches after leaving the hospital. Findings from a recently completed clinical trial provide strong support for this Sustained Care intervention. Aims in the current project are to develop and test a tablet computer-based, motivational counseling intervention that does not require a trained professional counselor. The goal is to conduct a clinical trial to demonstrate the effectiveness of this tablet-based, Sustained Care intervention for smokers engaged in psychiatric hospitalization. As before, the same quit smoking resources (Quitline and nicotine patches) will be provided upon hospital discharge. If successful, next steps will involve plans to implement this quit smoking intervention in psychiatric hospitals throughout Texas, in order to reduce the burden caused by tobacco-related cancers among the citizens of Texas.
Description
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of death in the U.S., resulting in over 480,000 deaths annually. Individuals with any mental illness constitute 18.9% of the U.S. adult population and are estimated to consume almost half (44.3%) of all cigarettes smoked in the U.S. Indeed, individuals with psychiatric disorders smoke cigarettes at disproportionately higher rates and bear an especially large proportion of the tobacco morbidity and mortality burden, with life spans more than 20 years shorter than the general population. People with mental disorders are at significantly elevated risk of mal…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * Male or female patients above the age of 18 capable of providing informed consent * Current smoker (at least 5 cigarettes/day when not hospitalized) * Willing and able to provide informed consent, attend all study visits, and comply with the protocol Exclusion Criteria: * Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score \< 24 * Current diagnosis of dementia or other cognitive impairment that would limit study participation * Inability to provide consent for study participation due to his/her inability to demonstrate an understanding of study procedures * Current diagnosis of…
Interventions
- BehavioralTablet-based sustained care
A tablet-based motivational-interviewing intervention, tailored specifically to smokers with psychiatric disorders, to motivate the use of evidence-based tobacco treatment and cessation in cigarette smokers upon discharge from an inpatient psychiatric hospitalization. In addition, participants will receive standard hospital tobacco care (see Usual Care Arm).
Location
- Ascension Shoal CreekAustin, Texas