The Effect of a Pilot Pediatric In-Patient Department-Based Smoking Cessation Intervention on Parental Smoking and Children's Secondhand Smoke (SHS) Exposure in Guangxi, China.

Kaiyong Huang,Abu Abdullah,Gang Liang,Xia Liang,Guangmin Nong,Li Yang,Zhiyong Zhang,Jing Liao,Jonathan Winickoff

doi:10.3390/ijerph13111109

Abstract

Children’s exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) at home has numerous adverse health effects. This study evaluated the effects of a pediatric in-patient department-based pilot smoking cessation intervention for household members to reduce children’s SHS exposure and encourage smoking cessation. A pre-post test design study was designed to assess the effectiveness of a telephone counseling intervention on household members of hospitalized children in pediatric departments. Data were collected with a standardized Chinese language questionnaire. At the three-month follow-up survey, the proportions of household members who reported adopting complete smoking restriction at home (55%), did not smoke at home at all (37%), did not allow others to smoke in the car (70%), or did not allow others to smoke around the child (57%) were significantly higher than the self-reported responses at the baseline survey. The proportions of household members who reported smoking at home (49%) and in the car (22%) were significantly lower than the baseline survey. Overall, 7% of the participants had reported quitting smoking after three months. Pediatric in-patient department-based telephone counseling for smoking cessation was found to be acceptable to Chinese parents. The intervention encouraged few parents to quit smoking, but encouraged more parents to take measures to reduce children’s SHS exposure.

Highlights

MethodsSubjects were recruited from the pediatric in-patient departments of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, the largest grade-three hospital in Nanning, Guangxi province
Secondhand smoke (SHS; known as environmental tobacco smoke) exposure in children contributes significantly to morbidity and mortality [1]
This study reports three-month follow-up results of a smoking cessation intervention for household members to reduce children’s secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure in Guangxi, China

Summary

Methods

Subjects were recruited from the pediatric in-patient departments of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, the largest grade-three hospital in Nanning, Guangxi province. All members of the household of the children in the pediatric in-patient departments of the hospital, admitted for at least 24 h, were eligible to participate in the study. Hospital systems in China follow a grading system. Trained research assistants collected data at baseline and at follow-up. Interviewers visited each hospitalized child’s household members to explain the study and invite them to participate in it. Voluntary participants signed the consent form and completed the baseline survey in a face-to-face interview. Baseline interviews were held in a conveniently located room in the hospital for the household members and took about 50 min. The interviewer was not engaged with the delivery of counseling

Results

Discussion

Conclusion