Methods: Review of the literature, focus group strategies

Findings: Historically, nurses in the US have had higher rates of smoking than other health professionals. This project which launched in January 2004, is the first national program focused on providing support for nurses who smoke and providing an organizational framework for engaging nurses in tobacco control. The Initiative was developed based upon the current literature about effective smoking cessation and tobacco control methods and focus group findings. The intervention uses a multi-pronged strategy to 1) support and assist smoking cessation efforts of nurses and nursing students through an innovative web-based program; 2) enhance the culture of nurses as advocates of a smoke-free society, and; 3) assure that tobacco control is a priority in professional nursing organizations by promoting tobacco control advocacy among the nursing leadership and assisting the leadership in the development of professional partnerships with experts in tobacco control.

Conclusions: The Tobacco Free Nurses initiative includes: 1) a nurse-tailored web-based intervention for smoking cessation; 2) mass media materials; and 3) a first ever national summit of nursing leaders to address enhancing the nursing role in tobacco control.

Implications: This program can be used as a model for addressing other important public health problems faced by nurses both personally and professionally.

Back to Evidence-Based Smoking Cessation: A Nursing Mandate
Back to 15th International Nursing Research Congress
Sigma Theta Tau International
July 22-24, 2004