Changing the smoking habit: prevalence, knowledge and attitudes among Umbrian hospital healthcare professionals

BACKGROUND. Health care professionals should work against smoking habit to promote a correct life style. This study aimed to evaluate smoking prevalence and attitudes towards tobacco among Umbrian hospital professionals in a period between 2006 and 2015, since the approbation of the law that ban smoking in hospitals and all public areas in 2003. METHODS. A cross-sectional study was carried out using a questionnaire administered in 2006, 2011 and 2015 to healthcare professionals. It consists of 53 multiple-choice questions. Potential predictors of current smoking habits were evaluated using univariate and multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS. The sample included 475 healthcare professionals. Current smokers constituted 34.53% of the sample and no significant difference (p = 0.257) emerged in prevalence over time (33.74% in 2006; 36.02% in 2011 and 33.77% in 2015). The risk of being a smoker increased by not considering the smoking habit as the main cause of preventable deaths (OR = 2.25; 95% CI: 1.47- 3.45). The strongest risk factor, which was significant in both models (p < 0.01), was being against the "No Smoking" law (OR = 18.90; 95% CI: 2.43-147.71; adjusted OR = 22.10; 95% CI: 1.85-264.78). CONCLUSIONS. The hospital staff has higher prevalence of smoking than the general population. The No Smoking law alone has been shown to be inadequate. Effective results can be achieved only by a common strategy and shared intervention programmes that are based on a workplace health promotion strategy. That for the moment has demonstrated to give interesting outcomes in modifying deep-rooted behaviour patterns.