title: Implementation of tobacco use cessation counseling among oral health professionals in Finland.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Clinical guidelines for tobacco use cessation (TUC) counseling recommend that healthcare professionals should provide brief tobacco counseling for all tobacco users. Widespread implementation of these guidelines seems to be insufficient. To enhance adherence to TUC counseling guidelines, it is essential to identify provider behaviors related to a successful implementation. This study aims to assess adherence to TUC counseling guidelines and factors that are associated with counseling behaviors.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 41-item questionnaire relevant to the implementation of TUC counseling guidelines among healthcare professionals was administered. This questionnaire included items used to evaluate TUC counseling behaviors as well Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF)-based behavior change items. Of the 95 oral health professionals invited from 34 community dental clinics in Finland, 73 professionals (76.8 percent) participated. The TDF factors and their associations to TUC counseling behaviors were analyzed using correlations and logistic regression analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Adherence to TUC counseling guidelines, especially for providing advice to quit, assisting in quitting and arranging follow-up services, were low. In addition, only 15.1 percent of the providers reported asking about tobacco use and 8.2 percent assessed interest in quitting among the majority (>75 percent) of their patients. Of the behavior change domains, "Memory, Attention and Decision Processes" and "Professional Role and Identity" were found to be significantly associated with TUC counseling behavior among oral health professionals.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Regarding the adherence to TUC counseling guidelines, there is room for improvement. The identified TDF factors related to TUC behaviors provide an avenue for targeted interventions to improve guideline implementation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Public Health, Institute of Dentistry, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Masamitsu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Amemori
authors.forename: Tellervo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Korhonen
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Michie
authors.forename: Heikki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Murtomaa
authors.forename: Taru H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Kinnunen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003752:Dental Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016540:Smoking Cessation; D062789:Tobacco Products
keywords: clinical practice guideline; dental staff; tobacco use cessation