Clinical Research Coordinator University of Ottawa Heart Institute Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Background: Tobacco smoking remains a major preventable cause of morbidity and mortality in Canada, with persistent regional disparities in smoking prevalence across regions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Prince Edward Island (PEI) Smoking Cessation Program (SCP) on smoking cessation outcomes, and to assess how cessation behavior was impacted during the Covid-19 pandemic.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of the baseline and 6-month follow-up data from 732 participants who enrolled in the PEI SCP from December 2019 to December 2020 and responded to the follow-up evaluation survey between October 2020 and August 2021.
Results: At the 6-month follow-up, 32.2% reported 7-day point-prevalence abstinence, and 27.5% reported 30-day point-prevalence abstinence. Nicotine dependence level was significantly reduced (p < 0.001), with the proportion of participants in the low Heaviness of Smoking Index (HSI) category increasing from 17% at baseline to 48.7% at follow-up. In contrast, the proportion in the medium HSI group dropped from 58.2% to 35.6%, and in the high group declined from 24.8% to 14.7%. While 66.5% of the respondents felt that the quality of service was not negatively affected by COVID-19, 29.7% reported that COVID-19 interfered with their cessation efforts, primarily due to stress (61%) and personal life-challenges (31.9%).
Conclusion: Findings from the PEI SCP showed positive outcomes, with approximately one-third of respondents achieving abstinence from smoking at 6-month follow-up. These findings support the continued implementation of tailored, evidence-based cessation programs in community health settings to reduce tobacco use and its associated health outcomes.
