Patient Nicotine Dependency Recovery
Resources for Medical Professionals
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Health care professionals know that quitting smoking may be the single greatest factor toward improving a patient's overall health and quality of life. But when alerting patients to existing tobacco related health problems, or the long-term consequences of smoking, far too often the provider's warnings go unheeded. When coupled with extremely high relapse rates among patients who do attempt, the endless cycle of frustration can condition health care professionals to simply stop trying to motivate cessation. The fact is, adequately armed, as a medical professional you are perfectly positioned to make a major difference.
While health care professionals know the benefits of smoking cessation they are not always informed or trained on successful interventions. Many providers have been sold on believing that alternate nicotine delivery vehicles such as the over-the-counter nicotine gum, patch, lozenge are state-of-the-art treatment strategies. While demonstrating almost two-fold efficacy in clinical trials, trials we now know were not blind as claimed, to date, in real-world settings, pharmacology has proven ineffective as a treatment strategy.
A 2002 JAMA study boldly concluded that "NRT appears no longer effective in increasing long-term successful cessation in California smokers."
A March 2003 meta-analysis found that 93% of patients using over-the-counter NRT products relapsed to smoking within six-months.
Pfizer's five new varenicline studies (Chantix and Champix) were engineered for success. The studies were not blind as claimed, excluded nearly 30% of applicants reflecting the most challenging quitting populations, were inflated by sixteen one-on-one counseling sessions and eight provider telephone calls, raised 165 potential side-effect concerns, including suicide, and, amazingly, were so sloppy that researchers allowed NRT use between the end of the 12-week treatment period and one-year follow-up without documenting NRT's impact upon outcome.
No matter how much or how long a patient has smoked nicotine they need to understand that the possibility of quitting exists for them. The self-help resources and materials below can aid health care providers in helping patients quit smoking or end dependence upon other forms of nicotine delivery.
Whether used to develop a deeper personal understanding to share with patients, as printed and shared patient handouts, or their existence and availability is simply brought to the patient's attention, given an opportunity, these free motivation, education and support resources have the potential to make a significant difference over what you've previously experienced. |
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Motivation Nicotine dependent patients who try quitting and fail generally attribute relapse to a lack of strength or willpower. In reality their inability to quit is much more likely due to a lack of understanding of how to quit. WhyQuit.com provides patients the information and understanding needed to successfully quit and stay quit.
Founded in July 1999 by John R. Polito, a once hopelessly addicted sixty cigarette-a-day smoker, originally WhyQuit was a motivational site whose objective was to provide a potent sampling of the hazards of smoking. Over the years WhyQuit evolved into what you see today, a content rich site providing motivation, education and support for any patient who dreams of breaking nicotine's powerful grip upon their mind, health and life. Your guidance can prime patients into wanting to quit; our additional information can support them through the nicotine dependency recovery process.
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Education The American Cancer Society's Cancer Facts & Figures 2003 report indicates that 91.4% of all successful long-term quitters quit entirely on their own without NRT products such as nicotine gum, the patch, lozenge, spray, inhaler, bupropion (Zyban/Wellbutrin) and without hypnosis or acupuncture. We've designed our site to help smokers understand that they too can follow their natural instincts and implement this extremely productive approach.
Joel's Library is WhyQuit's education cornerstone. Joel
Spitzer has been developing and conducting smoking prevention and cessation programs for
the past 33 years. His programs are designed to help quitters understand why people smoke, why they should stop, how to quit, and most importantly how to stay quit. His library's 95 reinforcement articles present smoking and nicotine as a true chemical dependency. Indexed under seven topics - dependency, health risks, quitting, relapse prevention, weight control, youth prevention, and history - each article in the collection is united by the underlying theme that to get off and stay off of cigarettes the smoker must learn to
"Never Take Another Puff."
A quick sampling of the library shows how Joel addresses the cessation blood-sugar swing issue, the emotional loss associated with quitting, sleep adjustments, fixating, anger, quitting crutches, "cheating," and the important issue of cessation weight gain.
Joel's "My Cigarette My Friend" has become a staple in cessation programs around the globe and is an excellent ice-breaking article to keep available in your patient waiting area.
Joel's Library is also home to his free Ebook that you may wish to download and print for patients who do not have Internet access. Entitled "Never Take Another Puff" it is Joel's Library in .PDF book format (1.32MB - 149 pages) and can be printed and presented as gifts to patients. Our only request is that our materials be made as freely available to patients as we have made them to you, without any cost or charge.
The Library's newest addition is a growing collection of Video and Audio Quit Smoking Lessons that allows physicians to burn their own disks and have smoking patients leave the office with counseling sessions in hand. Again, our only request is that these lessons be made freely available without charge or cost.
Joel Spitzer is also available online to answer patient quitting questions at AskJoel, an MSN based messageboard. This link is to Joel's upcoming
clinics and seminars in and around the Chicago area. Health care providers and staff are invited to attend, take notes, and incorporate Joel's cessation teachings, content and concepts into your practice or wellness program.
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Serious Group Support
Founded on September 8, 1999 by John R. Polito and Joanne Diehl, Freedom from Tobacco is a free 4,000+ member MSN hosted message board support forum . With the help of scores of dedicated volunteers, and the guidance of Joel Spitzer, Freedom evolved into a world-class education oriented
abrupt cessation forum where every member remains highly focused on a single topic - no nicotine today, Never Take Another Puff!
A 100% nicotine-free environment in every respect, Freedom's rules may sound harsh but they not only provide important rehabilitation sanctuary from those still under the influence of nicotine, they hammer home the essential understanding of relapse prevention that will be necessary if patients are to sustain permanent abstinence.
New arrivals are given a road-map of reading assignments designed to help navigate the first 72 hours of detoxing nicotine. They are also encouraged to explore Freedom's more than 300,000 indexed and archived messages. As with any learning environment, in order to maintain group focus only a limited number of new quitters are granted group posting privileges daily and each must provide written certification of having remained nicotine-free for 72 hours.
Today hundreds of Freedom graduates form a knowledgeable, skilled and supportive army of dedicated volunteers who are waiting to reach out to a new generation of arrivals that can include your smoking patients. Freedom's last two effectiveness reviews both generated 39% midyear continuous nicotine cessation for new members demonstrating participation in the group by posting at least once.
Please rest assured that Freedom has strictly enforced policies against any member rendering medical advice regarding any symptom described on the message board. Freedom's Courtesies and Rules expressly forbid members from rendering advice or making any recommendations regarding specific health concerns, answering member medication or herb concerns, or from making dieting recommendations. Instead members are strongly encouraged to seek the assistance of qualified professionals.
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We're here to help and there's only one rule.
No nicotine today, Never Take Another Puff!
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Contacts
Joel Spitzer
Nicotine Cessation Educator
c/o Evanston Health Department
2100 Ridge Avenue
Evanston, Illinois 60201 USA
(847) 328-7229
quitsmoking@joelspitzer.com
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John R. Polito, Editor
Nicotine Cessation Educator
Editor WhyQuit.com
1325 Pherigo Street
Mount Pleasant, S.C. 29464 USA
(843) 849-9721
john@whyquit.com
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