title: Views of African-American nurses about tobacco cessation and prevention.
abstract: African-Americans experience a disproportionate share of tobacco-related diseases and death and have not received equal access to tobacco cessation and prevention services. The purpose of this study was to describe views of African-American nurses about tobacco control. This was a survey of a convenience sample of attendees of the 2002 annual meeting of the National Black Nurses Association. One hundred and sixty three (N=163) nurses participated in the survey. Eighty-one percent (81%) of these nurses reported that they should be involved in tobacco control efforts; 92% indicated nurses should help patients stop smoking; 63% encountered patients who smoked at least every week, but only 11% of these nurses actually provided counseling for smoking cessation. The majority (89%) of these respondents also noted that nurses needed additional training in tobacco control. African-American nurses can address the significant tobacco-induced health disparities experienced by African-Americans by helping to prevent tobacco use and helping patients stop smoking. The findings of this study support the critical need for nursing education in tobacco control.
authors.affiliation: UCLA School of Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles 90095-6916, USA. lsarna@sonnet.ucla.edu
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sarna
authors.forename: Stella Aguinaga
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Bialous
authors.forename: Kim M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Hutchinson
authors.forename: Betty Smith
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Erika Sivarajan
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Froelicher
authors.forename: Mary Ellen
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Wewers
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000193:education / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel / Q000208:ethnology*; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006292:Health Priorities; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment; D024802:Nurse's Role; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015995:Prevalence; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000208:ethnology / Q000401:mortality; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D020340:Tobacco Use Cessation / Q000208:ethnology*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology