QUIT_MENTAL: Effectiveness of smoking cessation intervention among patients with mental disorders

INTERVENTIONQUIT_MENTAL: Effectiveness of smoking cessation intervention among patients with mental disorders
QUIT_MENTAL: Effectiveness of smoking cessation intervention among patients with mental disorders


Background

People with mental disorders are more likely to be smokers and the more complex is a disorder, the higher is tobacco consumption. In Catalonia, 74.4% of patients hospitalized with mental disorders are smokers; that is three times higher than in the general population (27.1%).

In the last decade, some cost-effective measures were applied to tobacco control in order to reduce tobacco-related diseases and associated mortality in this vulnerable group. These measures include:

  1. Smoke-free policies;
  2. Smoking cessation interventions including psychological support and pharmacological therapy i
  3. Community-based measures to maintain sustained support.

In Spain, the Law 42/2010 prohibits smoking in indoor and outdoor areas of the hospitals including the psychiatric units. Patients hospitalized with mental disease have the opportunity to receive professional help and remain abstinent during their hospital stay in order to comply with the regulations. However, once discharged, the community support for smoking cessation is insufficient.

QUIT_Mental Project aims at supporting smoking cessation among patients with mental disorders after their discharge from the hospitals via a telephone support given by expert nurses of 061 CatSalut Respon.

Overall objective 
To evaluate the effectiveness of the telephone intervention for smoking cessation through an intensive motivational approach.

Methodology
Community-based pragmatic randomized clinical trial. Participants who meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria will be randomized to the intervention group and the control group with allocation 2:1. A total of five tech hospitals of the city of Barcelona participate in the study that allowed to recruit a total of 1,002 patients.

The main dependent variable is the abstinence from smoking, self-reported and verified via saliva cotinine levels. Other variables of the study are the number of attempts to quit, the longest period of abstinence, the level of motivation and self-efficacy.

Duration
2016-2018. Currently in the study design phase.

Financial Support
Grant PI15/00875 (74.415 €, in three annual payments) of the Health Research Fund of the Institute of Health Carlos III (European Regional Development Fund, ERDF).

Research Team

  • Cristina Martínez (PI, ICO-IDIBELL)
  • Esteve Fernández (PI, ICO-IDIBELL)
  • Laura Allaustre (061 CatSalut Respon)
  • Montse Ballbè (ICO)
  • Roser Blanc (061 CatSalut Respon)
  • Eugeni Bruguera (Vall d’Hebron Hospital)
  • Xavier Escalda (061 CatSalut Respon)
  • Marta Enriquez (ICO-IDIBELL)
  • Ariadna Feliu (UCT ICO-IDIBELL)
  • Joseph Guydish (UCSF)
  • Rosa Hernández (H. Bellvitge)
  • Sílvia Mondón (H. Clínic)
  • Cristina Pinet  (H. Sant Pau)
  • Nuria Quirós (ICO)
  • Antònia Raich (Althaia)
  • Susana Subira (University of Barcelona)
  • Josep Maria Suelves (?Health Departament)
  • Núria Torres (061 CatSalut Respon)
  • Jordi Vicens (University of Barcelona)