RESEARCH Open Access

Physicians discuss the risks of smoking with their patients, but seldom offer practical cessation support Jaana Keto1*, Jari Jokelainen1,2, Markku Timonen1, Kari Linden3 and Tero Ylisaukko-oja1 Background: Our aim was to study the smoking cessation-related 1) attitudes & experiences and 2) consultation practices of Finnish physicians and to determine if there is a relationship between the two. Methods: An online survey on smoking cessation was sent to 39 % of all Finnish physicians, with emphasis on physicians working in fields relevant to smoking cessation. A total of 1141 physicians (response rate 15 %) responded to the online survey, 53 % of whom were employed in primary health care. A total of 1066 respondents were eligible for the analysis. The questionnaire included questions on the physician’s own smoking status, their attitudes and experiences on smoking cessation, and the implementation of smoking cessation in clinical practice. Two sub-scales concerning smoking-related consultation activities were constructed: one for conversation, and another for practical actions. Results: The most common consultation activities (respondents who reported doing the following action