Pediatric-based smoking cessation intervention for low-income women: a randomized trial.
BACKGROUND
Continued high rates of smoking among socioeconomically disadvantaged women lead to increases in children's health problems associated with exposure to tobacco smoke. The pediatric clinic is a "teachable setting" in which to provide advice and assistance to parents who smoke.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate a smoking cessation intervention for women.


METHODS
Two-arm (usual care vs intervention) randomized trial.


METHODS
Pediatric clinics serving an ethnically diverse population of low-income families in the greater Seattle, Wash, area.


METHODS
During the clinic visit, women received a motivational message from the child's clinician, a guide to quitting smoking, and a 10-minute motivational interview with a nurse or study interventionist. Women received as many as 3 outreach telephone counseling calls from the clinic nurse or interventionist in the 3 months following the visit.


METHODS
Self-identified women smokers (n = 303) whose children received care at participating clinics.


METHODS
Self-reported abstinence from smoking 12 months after enrollment in the study, defined as not smoking, even a puff, during the 7 days prior to assessment.


RESULTS
Response rates at 3 and 12 months were 80% and 81%. At both follow-ups, abstinence rates were twice as great in the intervention group as in the control group (7.7% vs 3.4% and 13.5% vs 6.9%, respectively). The 12-month difference was statistically significant.


CONCLUSIONS
A pediatric clinic smoking cessation intervention has long-term effects in a socioeconomically disadvantaged sample of women smokers. The results encourage implementation of evidence-based clinical guidelines for smoking cessation in pediatric practice.
Curry
Susan J
SJ
Center for Health Studies, Group Health Cooperative, University of Illinois at Chicago, 60607, USA. suecurry@uic.edu
Ludman
Evette J
EJ
Graham
Elinor
E
Stout
James
J
Grothaus
Louis
L
Lozano
Paula
P
D000328:Adult; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D010372:Pediatrics; D011203:Poverty; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014861:Washington