FEASIBILITY OF THE MULTIMODAL SMOKING CESSATION INTERVENTION DURING HOSPITALIZATION WITH SIX-MONTH FOLLOW-UP POST-DISCHARGE: A PILOT STUDY

The main aim of this pilot project was to introduce multimodal smoking cessation intervention in the hospital setting and to analyze users’ satisfaction and efficacy of the intervention within six months post-discharge. Multimodal intervention for smoking cessation was used and it consisted of the “5 A’s” model (Ask, Advice, Assess, Assist, Arrange) for behavior change, printed self-help materials for smoking cessation, and telephone counseling (one, three and six months after discharge from the hospital). The main outcome of the study was smoking status at six months. A total of 103 participants were included in this pilot project. At six-month follow-up, 49% of participants self-reported continuous non-smoking. Among the remaining participants, 20 reported smoking reduction, 19 were still smoking, and 16 participants were unable to make contact with. In the logistic regression, among all analyzed variables, only two of them were positively associated with smoking cessation after six months: participants’ response that they would like to quit smoking within the next six months (B=4.688; p=0.018) and answering that they did not smoke when they were ill and bed-ridden due to illness (B=3.253; p=0.020). Satisfaction with the intervention was very high; 70% of participants rated the intervention as ‘excellent’. Therefore, multimodal smoking cessation intervention can be successfully introduced at hospital setting yielding high smoking abstinence rates at six months post-discharge and high level of user satisfaction. Healthcare workers who work in hospitals should be educated so they can provide such intervention on a regular basis.