title: Smoking: attitudes of Costa Rican physicians and opportunities for intervention.
abstract: The aim of this study was to obtain information, using a written questionnaire, on the knowledge, smoking behaviour, and attitudes of Costa Rican physicians about smoking as a health issue. A random sample of 650 physicians was chosen from a list of active physicians; 287 of them were covered by survey between August 1993 and October 1994, and 217 (76%) responded with data for the study. While 40% of the physicians who participated were ex-smokers, 19% were current smokers; 67% of these two groups combined reported smoking in the workplace. Only 49% believed that physicians could be a nonsmoking role model; the majority (87%) had asked patients about their smoking status. The only cessation technique consistently used (90%) was counselling about the dangers of smoking. Measures such as setting a date to quit smoking and nicotine replacement were rarely recommended (< or = 2%). Nearly all the physicians (99%) considered smoking to be a major health issue. These results showed a high prevalence of smoking among Costa Rican physicians, with little recognition of the need for them to set an example as a role model. While they were knowledgeable about the health risks of smoking, they did not recommend any of the proven techniques to help their patients to quit smoking. A clear consensus for more strict tobacco regulation exists, but to date little has been done to act on this.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003364:Costa Rica / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires