Smoking, barriers to quitting, and smoking-related knowledge, attitudes, and patient practices among male physicians in China.
BACKGROUND
Successful interventions to reduce the high rate of smoking among male physicians in China might contribute to reduction in tobacco use in the country overall. Better characterization of smoking, barriers to quitting, and smoking-related knowledge, attitudes, and patient practices in this physician population will help plan such interventions and provide baseline data to evaluate their effectiveness.


METHODS
A self-administered survey of smoking-related knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and patient practices was conducted among health care professionals in 2 large teaching hospitals in China.


RESULTS
Of 103 male physicians, those who smoked (n = 51) had a more limited knowledge of smoking-related disease and were less likely to advise patients to quit smoking compared with nonsmoking physicians (n = 52). More than one-fourth (29%) of nonsmoking physicians accepted gift cigarettes, and these physicians were less likely to ask their patients about their smoking status than those who did not accept gift cigarettes. Seventy-five percent of smokers reported that their hospitals did not help them quit, and only 19% reported receiving training in how to help their patients quit.


CONCLUSIONS
High rates of smoking, gifting of cigarettes, limited support for physician quitting, and limited training on cessation approaches may compromise the ability of male physicians in China to effectively treat their patients who smoke.
Ceraso
Marion
M
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, 387 WARF Bldg, 610 Walnut St, Madison, WI 53726, USA. ceraso@uwccc.wisc.edu
McElroy
Jane A
JA
Kuang
Xiaodong
X
Vila
Peter M
PM
Du
Xueping
X
Lu
Long
L
Ren
Hongkun
H
Qian
Ning
N
Jorenby
Douglas E
DE
Fiore
Michael C
MC
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002681:China; D004501:Education, Medical; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D010820:Physicians; D011364:Professional Practice; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires