Successful, Brief, Small-Group Cessation Interventions –
7/18/08

Q: West Virginia continually receives requests for ‘short programs’ addressing cessation.  Are any states successfully (i.e., getting people to either call, enroll for quitline services and/or seek a health provider's assistance) by implementing a brief 30 minutes to 2 hours maximum program, meeting, or intervention for tobacco cessation for a few individuals or a small group (5 to 10 people maximum)?  Please share whether such a program exists and if there is any evaluation, success information available.

A:

1. New Hampshire: The research shows that successful quitting strategies include brief (3-5 minute) interventions with frequent dosing or longer interventions with less frequent dosing.  Keep in mind, however, that those wanting to quit do not have the knowledge base to understand why tobacco treatment sessions are structured over 6-8 weeks (similar to NRT dosing).  Highly motivated quitters may need less frequent dosing to modify their behavior, particularly if pharmaceuticals/NRT is part of the treatment protocol.
    
2. New Jersey: New Jersey has a program and media campaign called www.whatsyourexcusenj.com that hooks into the words of many a smoker "I’ll quit when..."  The site gives a list of excuses and the opportunity for the visitor to add their own.  There is also a small video that helps erase a lot of the standard excuses. On the page are links to the NJ resources (NJQuitline, NJ Quitnet and the NJ Quitcenters) where the potential client can go to see what will work for them.  If they are interested in the NJ Quitline, they can fill out a request and they will be contacted by the Quitline.  They are also connected to the NJ Quitnet and also given a list and information on the available Quitcenters.  There is a connection to the www.NJQuit2Win.com site that provides information to physicians, employers and others on tobacco dependence treatment.  Included on the site are PowerPoint presentations that can be used in making presentations to the potential clients.  These presentations are used by the NJ community partners.  In addition, our Quitcenters will arrange on-site presentations for a negotiated fee.
    
3. Oklahoma: Oklahoma regularly participates in this type of training opportunity with private clinics and physician practices, tribal support centers and IHS healthcare facilities, and our county health departments.  The provision of these "short programs" has allowed us to promote utilization of evidence-based cessation interventions, the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline and our fax referral system to healthcare providers statewide.  The most successful aspect of our outreach has been an increase in utilization of our Helpline services by the American Indian population.  The Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline recognizes the traditional role tobacco has in American Indian culture and has developed specific protocol to appropriately treat commercial tobacco dependence within the population.  Our program has also worked with the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine to research the application of specific training methods to increase applied clinical intervention for treating obesity and tobacco dependence and nutrition.

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