The perceived effectiveness of smoking cessation interventions aimed at pregnant women: A qualitative study of smokers, former smokers and non-smokers

Abstract

As part of an NHS-funded research programme, pregnant women and mothers of preschool children were interviewed about their views on smoking in pregnancy and parenthood. Their partners were also interviewed where consent was obtained. In this paper, respondents' opinions on the perceived effectiveness of smoking cessation interventions aimed at pregnant women are reported. Research participants were able to describe a number of smoking cessation interventions that were perceived as being effective at preventing smoking activity during pregnancy. However, smokers reported less interventions than other respondents. Over half of smokers in the present study were contemplating cessation at the time of the interview, but none of these individuals had set a date to quit or made a plan of action on how to quit. While the majority of former-smokers and non-smokers felt that health professionals were the ‘right people’ to give smoking cessation advice to pregnant women, nearly all of the current smokers disagreed with this statement. Therefore, health professionals' need to be aware of individual differences in how their patients interpret evidence-based information on smoking cessation and plan interventions accordingly.