Knowledge, Attitudes, and Smoking Behaviours among Physicians Specializing in Public Health: A Multicentre Study
Table 2
Health care providers’ role in cessation (in smokers and nonsmokers sample).
Opinions on health care providers’ role in smoking cessation
Frequencies (%)a
Nonsmokers (%)b
Current smokers (%)c
value
Should HPs get specific training on cessation techniques?
Yes
361 (94.3)
291 (95.1)
70 (90.9)
No
22 (5.7)
15 (4.9)
7 (9.1)
0.002*∧
HPs serve as role models for their patients and the public?
Yes
309 (80.7)
252 (82.4)
57 (74.0)
No
74 (19.3)
54 (17.6)
20 (26.0)
<0.001*∧
Should HPs regularly advise smokers to quit?
Yes
377 (98.4)
303 (99.0)
74 (96.1)
No
6 (1.6)
3 (1.0)
3 (3.9)
0.001*°∧
Should HPs regularly advise smokers to quit chewing tobacco/smoking cigar or pipe?
Yes
373 (97.4)
299 (97.7)
74 (96.1)
0.003*°∧
No
10 (2.6)
7 (2.3)
3 (3.9)
Do HPs have a role in giving advice or information about smoking cessation to patients?
Yes
375 (97.9)
299 (97.7)
76 (98.7)
0.004*°∧
No
8 (2.1)
7 (2.3)
1 (1.3)
Patients have more chances to quit smoking if helped by HPs?
Yes
332 (86.7)
272 (88.9)
60 (77.9)
<0.001*∧
No
51 (13.3)
34 (11.1)
17 (22.1)
Postgraduate tobacco-related training
Frequencies (%)d
Nonsmokers (%)e
Current smokers (%)f
value
Have you been taught about smoking risk during your postgraduate course?
Yes
262 (69.1)
205 (67.4)
57 (76.0)
0.001*∧
No
117 (30.9)
99 (32.6)
18 (24.0)
Have you ever receive specific training on smoking cessation during your postgraduate course?
Yes
66 (17)
53 (17.3)
13 (16)
0.003*∧
No
313 (80.7)
251 (81.8)
62 (76.5)
Have you ever heard, during your postgraduate course, about nicotin patches or gum used in cessation programs?
Yes
368 (94.8)
294 (95.8)
74 (91.4)
0.002*∧
No
11 (2.8)
10 (3.3)
1 (1.2)
Have you ever heard, during your specialization, about antidepressant (Bupropion or Zyban) used in cessation programs?
Yes
163 (43.0)
129 (42.4)
4 (45.3)
0.003*∧
No
216 (57.0)
175 (57.6)
41 (54.6)
Have you been taught about the importance of providing informative materials to help patients quit smoking?
Yes
195 (51.5)
154 (50.6)
41 (54.6)
0.002*∧
No
184 (48.5)
150 (49.3)
34 (45.3)
Have you been taught about the importance of registering patients smoking history as part of the anamnesis?
Yes
222 (58.6)
183 (60.2)
39 (52.0)
0.001*∧
No
157 (41.4)
121 (39.8)
36 (48.0)
5 missing values for “attitude and beliefs”; b1 missing value for “attitude and beliefs” among nonsmokers; c4 missing values for “attitude and beliefs” among current smokers; d9 missing values for variables concerning knowledge; e3 missing values for nonsmokers; f6 missing values among current smokers. Chi-square test was performed to evaluate differences for categorical variables. value is the difference between smokers and nonsmokers in each variable considered. HPs: Health professionals; (level of significance); °Fisher’s exact test.
