title: S-PC: an e-treatment application for management of smoke-quitting patients.
abstract: The main objective of this paper is to present a new program that facilitates the management of people who want to quit smoking, implemented through an e-treatment software called S-PC (Smoker Patient Control). S-PC is a web-based application that manages groups of patients, provides a bidirectional communication through mobile text messages and e-mails between patients and clinicians and offers advice and control to keep track of the patients and their status. A total of 229 patients were enrolled in the study, randomly divided into two groups, although some variables were tested to ensure that there were no significant differences between the groups that could have an impact on the outcome of the treatment. There were no significant differences between the two groups regarding the ratio/number of males/females, tobacco dependence, co-oximetry, average cigarette consumption, current age and age when smoking started. The first group was made up of 104 patients (45.4% of the total) and followed a treatment that incorporated the S-PC tool, while the second one had 125 patients without the S-PC tool. S-PC was evaluated for its effectiveness at assisting the patients to give up smoking, and its effect on clinician time management. 74% of the S-PC group completed the treatment without relapses and remained abstinent three months after the completion of the treatment, understanding abstinence as being continuous (with no relapses allowed and co-oximetry below 1 ppm) from the day of stopping. In contrast only 45.6% of the No S-PC group completed the treatment without relapses and remained abstinent three months after completion of the treatment. The rate of admittance to the program has doubled in one year and patients went from having to wait for 3 months to be immediately admitted into the program. This therapeutic e-health program aims at maximizing the number of patients that a professional can effectively help to quit smoking. In addition, the system also detects patients who are not progressing appropriately, allowing the professional to improve their treatment parameters dynamically.
authors.affiliation: Departament d'Informàtica i Enginyeria Industrial & INSPIRES, Universitat de Lleida, Av. Jaume II no 69, 25001 LLeida, Spain.
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vilaplana
authors.affiliation: Departament d'Informàtica i Enginyeria Industrial & INSPIRES, Universitat de Lleida, Av. Jaume II no 69, 25001 LLeida, Spain. Electronic address: francesc@diei.udl.cat.
authors.forename: Francesc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Solsona
authors.affiliation: Unitat de Tabaquisme de l'Hospital Santa Maria, Alcalde Rovira Roure, 44, 25198 LLeida, Spain.
authors.forename: Francesc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Abella
authors.affiliation: Hesoft Group, Partida Bovà, 15, 25196 Lleida, Spain.
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cuadrado
authors.affiliation: Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques & IRBLleida, Universitat de Lleida, Montserrat Roig no 2, 25008 LLeida, Spain.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Alves
authors.affiliation: Departament d'Informàtica i Enginyeria Industrial & INSPIRES, Universitat de Lleida, Av. Jaume II no 69, 25001 LLeida, Spain.
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mateo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D040421:Cell Phone; D003142:Communication; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009538:Nicotine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods; D012008:Recurrence; D017010:Reminder Systems; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods*; D017216:Telemedicine; D014584:User-Computer Interface
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine
keywords: E-health; SMS; Smoking cessation; Treatment support