Promoting Tobacco Cessation via the Workplace: Opportunities for Improvement

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hannon PA ; Harris JR ; Hughes MC ; Reid TR ; Tran NM ; Yette EM
• Description:
  Introduction: Little research exists on the prevalence of evidence-based tobacco cessation practices in workplaces, employer promotion of state-sponsored quitlines and predictors of these practices. Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of the 2008 Healthy Worksite Survey, a telephone survey administered to Washington employers with 50 or more employees (n=693). The objectives were to describe workplaces' implementation of evidence-based tobacco cessation practices and identify key predictors of implementation in order to highlight opportunities for interventions. Results: Among these employers, 38.6% promoted quitting tobacco, and 33.8% offered insurance coverage for cessation medications and counselling, 27.5% referred no-smoking violators to cessation services, and 5.7% included the state-sponsored quitline in health promotion messages. Larger workplaces and workplaces with a wellness staff, committee or coordinator had greater insurance coverage for tobacco cessation, communications promoting tobacco cessation, and promotion of the state-sponsored quitline (p<0.01). Workplaces with a wellness staff, committee or coordinator referred more violators of no-smoking policies to cessation services (p<0.01). Conclusions: In Washington State workplaces do little to promote tobacco cessation by their employees. The lack of tobacco cessation promoting practices at small businesses, restaurants and bars, and businesses without wellness personnel indicates an opportunity for finding and reaching current smokers at businesses with limited resources. By adopting inexpensive prevention efforts, such as promoting the state-sponsored tobacco cessation quitline, employers can help employees quit smoking and, thereby, assist in improving employee health and lower medical costs. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Health Promotion Occupational Health Safety Smokers Tobacco Products
• Keywords:
  Cigarette Smoking Health Promotion Smoking Tobacco Worker Health
• ISSN:
  0964-4563
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 10 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  305-308
• Volume:
  20
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20056700
• Citation:
  Tob Control 2011 Jul; 20(4):305-308
• Contact Point Address:
  M Courtney Hughes, Department of Health Services, The University of Washington, Box 354804, Seattle, WA, USA 98195
• Email:
  mchughes@u.washington.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• Performing Organization:
  University of Washington
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Tobacco Control
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:1a739e32af34d64f85cd09b5b4336fdb8007c4470f97a32e7bfd5263512f239678bc67485c504e57d46736da46eb18500d9734dc0f2f3b0007f89f121d1ce4af
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/214252/cdc_214252_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 204.55 KB ]