Smoking cessation : implementation of a group intervention in a community mental health setting

Abstract

Individuals with mental illnesses smoke tobacco at a much higher rate than the general population. Given the elevated rate of morbidity and mortality in this population, providing tobacco cessation programs within community mental health clinics is an important step in improving health outcomes. The comprehensive literature review of 56 peer reviewed articles highlights key factors affecting tobacco use in mental illness, including biologic and psychosocial variables, evidence-based guidelines and interventions used to support tobacco cessation in this population, and barriers and incentives for treatment. Based on this literature, an eight-week, nurse-led smoking cessation program was implemented at a rural Montana based community mental health center. This pilot intervention was the first of its kind within the selected mental health center. In order to determine feasibility, the author shares outcomes in terms of participants' smoking cessation behaviors, cigarette use, and cigarette dependence before and after the eight-week group, as well as limitations and implications for future programs. It is hoped this project will inform practitioners and nurses about factors associated with tobacco use in clients with mental illness to guide future treatment at the community mental health center.