Smoking Cessation: Is Motivational Interviewing Effective When Guiding Vulnerable Patients to Quit?

Introduction: While smoking rates have declined significantly since the first Surgeon General’s report 50 years ago, smoking cessation remains an issue among certain populations. Those suffering from smoking related disorders, such as COPD, lung cancer, ischemic heart disease, and stroke have much to gain from cessation. Individuals with low-income or diagnosed with a substance abuse disorder are disproportionately impacted by cigarette smoking, thus can benefit from cessation efforts as well. Methods: To explore the current approaches of smoking cessation, a literature review was conducted. Once motivational interviewing (MI) was noted as the most oft used counseling strategy, articles implementing MI as the intervention with at-risk populations were screened and 4 articles involving patients with a minimum of 10 year smoking history, biochemically verified as an active smoker , and over 18 were analyzed. Passive observation of a tobacco treatment specialist treating patients in the hospital as well as the clinic was also conducted. Results: The literature revealed statistically significant cessation rates among patients diagnosed with ACS and visiting a pulmonary clinic for respiratory symptoms in addition to clinically significant findings in smokers diagnosed with a substance abuse disorder and patients with low-income. One case, involving a patient with a recent myocardial infarction was selected from the passive observation experience and served as the subject of the case study. Discussion: Many patients have a desire to quit smoking, but only 20 % report receiving assistance from their provider. Findings from the literature and the case study demonstrate the benefit of MI and support its proactive use in healthcare.Bachelor of Scienc