Deirdre Shires, MSW, Tobacco Use Reduction Project, Voices of Detroit Initiative/American Legacy Foundation, 4201 St. Antoine, University Health Center, Suite 9-C, Detroit, MI 48201, 313-832-4246, dshires@med.wayne.edu and Lucille Smith, MEd, Voices of Detroit Initiative, Detroit Medical Center, 4201 St. Antoine Blvd., 9C- UHC, Detroit, MI 48201.

Twelve interactive touch screen health education kiosks were placed in primary care clinics and community centers around the city of Detroit. All clinics serve primarily low income medically underserved African American patients. Kiosks are situated in waiting areas or lobbies and provide audiovisual information directed by patients touching the screen. The program – the “Smoking Channel” – teaches users about the health effects of tobacco, the benefits of quitting smoking, and ideas about how to quit. Although utilizers are not identifiable, surveys track attitudes towards smoking and quitting for each participant before and after kiosk use. The pre-program survey gleans information about demographics (gender, race, age, health insurance status), smoking status, attitudes towards smoking, perceived barriers to quitting, and readiness to quit. All survey elements (excluding demographics) are revisited after the patient uses the health education module, in order to measure the immediate change in attitudes that may result from kiosk use. Over a three year period (March 2001 to March 2004), nearly 10,000 clinic visitors used the 12 kiosks, providing a unique picture of smoking rates, attitudes, and readiness to quit among the patient sample. Data show that nearly 30% of patients had smoked over 100 cigarettes in their lives, and 28% of smokers are thinking about quitting smoking in the next 30 days. Results discussed also include demographic and smoking rate differences across clinic types and clinic locations, as well as barriers and benefits of reaching patients through an interactive health education module.

Learning Objectives: Learning objectives

At the end of the session, participants will be able to
• Discuss smoking rates in a clinic based self-selected sample in Detroit by age, race, and insurance status.
• Describe the pros and cons of providing health education through interactive kiosks.
• Assess the immediate impact of self-directed health education on attitudes towards smoking readiness to quit smoking.

Keywords: Health Education, Tobacco

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: employee of Voices of Detroit Initiative Project funded by the Merck Company Foundation

Smoking Cessation Poster Session II

The 132nd Annual Meeting (November 6-10, 2004) of APHA