What non-drug interventions can the clinician use to help patients quit smoking?
Brief interventions (e.g., personalized advice; then asking, “How do you feel about stopping smoking?”; and listening empathetically for just 30-40 seconds) versus no intervention lead to an average absolute increase in cessation at one year of 2.3% (10). In other words, for every 43 patients who receive brief intervention, one will quit smoking. While this effect may seem small, one must remember that the extra 30-40 seconds required to do this on each visit can markedly diminish a life-threatening risk. The transformation from smoker to ex-smoker usually requires significant neurochemical, behavioural, and attitudinal changes. Treatment tailored to the patient s stage of readiness to quit smoking accelerates the process (11). Many years often pass from the first attempt to stop smoking until the smoker goes for a year without a puff. The patient s struggle with smoking cessation should be regarded as a chronic condition (12). In this struggle, patients want their doctor to understand
