Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #110865

Peter Meacher, MD¹, Sharad Sreenivasan, LMSW, MS¹, and Deborah Snider, MPH². (1) South Bronx Health Center for Children and Families, Montefiore Medical Center, 871 Prospect Ave., Bronx, NY 10459, 718-991-0605, ssreeniv@montefiore.org, (2) Montefiore Medical Center, South Bronx Health Center for Children and Families, 871 Prospect Ave, Bronx, NY 10459

BACKGROUND: The rate of cigarette smoking in poor communities such as the South Bronx is extremely high. Decreasing the rate of smoking will significantly reduce the morbidity and mortality from asthma, heart disease, diabetes and HIV. Although it has been shown that smoking cessation interventions work, there has been limited study of the effectiveness of these programs in such communities. This session describes the logistics of setting up a program in a community health center, the strengths/limitations of such a program and report preliminary data collected. METHODS: The program has been developed as a model for busy primary care health centers serving poor and uninsured populations. Core components of the smoking program have included provider and nursing staff education, nicotine replacement, support groups, and patient education/support materials. Patients completed questionnaires before and after the programs and focus groups have been held to evaluate the program. Information on the smoking status of individuals after 12 months is being collected. RESULTS: In a series of 4 programs and 40 support group meetings, participants were unable to attend regularly and a structured syllabus was impractical. Most patient education/support materials were not helpful. However, at the end of the last series, 40% of participants had quit, many had reduced the number of cigarettes smoked and all reported increased motivation to quit. CONCLUSION: In poor, multiracial, multiethnic communities smoking cessation programs can be effective but require modification and administrative planning.

Learning Objectives: