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February 2012
NAQC News
Webinar on Social Media Technologies and Quitlines TODAY, 2:00-2:30 p.m. ET!
Today’s call (February 9, 2012) will feature Jack Boomer (BC Lung Association) and Frankie Best (BC Ministry of Health) who will be speaking on “Incorporating Social Media Technologies into Cessation Services .” They will talk about the lessons they learned to incorporate social media into their suite of cessation services, experiences they have had to date, and the impact of social media. They will identify potential research opportunities that may be of interest to the quitline community. For more information about their presentation, call-in information, and other future speakers click here.
This webinar is part of NAQC’s “Coffee Break” series, a monthly 30-minute webinar designed to serve as an informal forum to discuss current, upcoming, and potential quitline-related research; facilitate communication and interaction between researchers; and create and support connections between researchers and quitlines. Typically, the presenter gives a 10-15 minute presentation on a newly published research article, a new methodology for conducting research or collecting data, a description of a newly funded study, etc. There are 10-15 minutes at the end of each presentation for questions. The calls are scheduled 2:00 to 2:30pm eastern time on the second Thursday of each month. To join the mailing list to receive information about future coffee break calls and quitline research information click here. The presentation slides and call recordings for past presentations are available here.
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Participate in February 15th Seminar - A Conversation with Australia and New Zealand: Implementation of GHWs!
The webinar will take place on Wednesday, February 15th from 4:30-6 PM ET and will focus on how these two countries prepared for and addressed implementation of graphic health warning labels. We will be joined by colleagues from The Quit Group, New Zealand and Quit Victoria, Australia who will share their experiences related to:
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Call volumes, surges, call patterns and types of callers;
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Operational and technical issues;
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Media and communications; and
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Research and evaluation.
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We Need Your Recommendations for the Board of Directors!
We are counting on you to help us find outstanding candidates again this year. All NAQC members may submit candidate names. You are welcome to recommend names of candidates whom you nominated in past years.
For each person you would like to recommend, please provide the following information to Wayne Tormala, Chair of the Nomination Committee, c/o Board@naquitline.org by February 17:
1. Full name, contact information and brief resume for the person;
2. Your rationale for recommending this person as a candidate; and
3. Confirmation that you have spoken to the person and know that s/he is willing to have her/his name put forward to the Nomination Committee for consideration.
» learn more
NAQC Conference 2012: Registration Now Open!
It is with great pleasure that NAQC invites all members and others dedicated to improving the effectiveness of and access to quitline services to register for our upcoming conference. NAQC Conference 2012, QUITLINE INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY: Exploring Strategies and Seizing Opportunities in Challenging Times, will take place August 13th and 14th in Kansas City, Missouri as an ancillary meeting to the National Conference on Tobacco or Health. Registration opened on February 2nd.
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FY2011 Annual Survey Update!
The FY2011 Annual Survey was fielded January 25, 2012. Thanks to those of you who have already completed your surveys! Below are some important highlights for the FY2011 survey process:
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Surveys will be open until February 21, 2012, and later for those who need extensions. (To request an extension, email annualsurvey@naquitline.org).
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The survey instruments are available on the 2011 Annual Survey web page. PLEASE NOTE there are different versions of the survey for US and for Canadian quitlines; please make sure to download the correct versions.
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The FY2011 survey is being fielded using Survey Monkey (the same system we used for the budget survey in the fall of 2011).
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A training webinar for the annual survey was held on Wednesday, January 25. The webinar agenda and slides are posted on the NAQC annual survey web page.
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ONLY ONE PERSON from each quitline should be tasked with entering item responses for the entire survey. Survey respondents should circulate the PDF or Word versions of the survey to collect all necessary information prior to entering data in Survey Monkey. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. IF YOU ARE THE PERSON FROM YOUR QUITLINE WHO SHOULD ENTER DATA FOR THE SURVEY, BUT YOU DID NOT RECEIVE A LINK TO THE SURVEY MONKEY SURVEY, PLEASE CONTACT NAQC IMMEDIATELY (annualsurvey@naquitline.org).
For more information about this year’s survey, please visit the 2011 survey page. We realize that you have many competing priorities and commitments, and we thank you for taking the time to complete the survey every year. Without your help we could not collect this valuable information. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please let us know at annualsurvey@naquitline.org.
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MDS “How Heard About” Item Modified to Account for Graphic Health Warnings on Cigarette Packs!
In response to requests from NAQC members and national partners, the NAQC Minimal Data Set (MDS) workgroup has convened and made recommendations regarding one change to the intake question assessing how tobacco users heard about the quitline to include a national toll-free number on cigarette packages. The new response option is intended to help assess the impact of graphic health warnings on quitline call volume. Since the responses of callers are subject to individual recall, it is worth noting that the data will not provide a complete and 100% accurate measure of direct impact of graphic health warnings on quitline call volume. The proposed modifications will allow for monitoring changes in responses to the “how heard about” question currently on the MDS.
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NAQC Membership Drive!
NAQC’s annual membership drive will begin on February 16. We hope you will continue to be a part of this important quitline community! You may take advantage of the early bird renewal special and have your name entered into a raffle to win a free registration to the NAQC Conference if you renew by May 31st . To avoid a lapse in your membership benefits, please submit payment for your dues by July 1, 2012 (payments are accepted in a form of a check, credit card payment, and online renewal). Please refer to the membership page for more information.
For questions regarding membership, please contact Natalia Gromov at 800-398-5489 ext 701 or membership@naquitline.org.
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Find more NAQC News in our Newsroom or go back to top.
Tobacco Control
Updates From The American Legacy Foundation!
The American Legacy Foundation has announced new information on its national survey on smokers’ concealment of smoking from their health care providers, 2011 Community Activist Award winners, two new collaborations related to TRUTH, and a basic tobacco intervention training. Please find additional information at the link below.
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FDA's Review of Science Related to Menthol!
In an independent review, FDA evaluated all available science related to the impact of menthol in cigarettes on public health and drafted a report. FDA submitted its report to external scientists for peer review, and the agency is revising its report based on their feedback. The agency is preparing to make its final report available for public comment in the Federal Register. In addition, FDA will post the scientists’ feedback and the agency’s response to the feedback.
The public comments received in response to FDA’s final report may provide additional evidence or emerging data.
» learn more
CDC Communication Products Using Valentine’s Theme to Promote Cessation and Heart Health!
OSH is in the process of updating several communication products that capitalize on themes of love, caring, and heart health. As of February 6, the following products are accessible via OSH's Smoking & Tobacco Use Web site.
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A CDC.gov feature article that a) encourages smokers to protect the health of their heart by quitting smoking and b) provides links to information about the effects of smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke on cardiovascular health as well as resources to increase quitting success
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Information on OSH's Smoking & Tobacco Use Web site that summarizes key information from the feature article and contains links to cessation resources and social media tools
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A CDC Everyday Health widget that links to information on OSH's Web site
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Valentine's buttons that link to information on OSH's Web site
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Valentine's E-cards that link to information on OSH's Web site
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A Facebook post and tweet
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Postings on GovLoop encouraging readers to visit the online feature article
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Information on how to subscribe to CDC's Text Message service to receive regular text messages on a variety of health topics, such as OSH's Valentine's Day message that drives home the importance of smoking cessation to cardiovascular health
» learn more
Find more Tobacco Control in our Newsroom or go back to top.
Research
Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Cars Among Middle and High School Students—United States, 2000–2009.
King BA, Dube SR, Tynan MA. Pediatrics. Published online February 6, 2012.
In this study, data on youth exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) was reviewed from the National Youth Tobacco Survey, a national survey of U.S. students in grades 6 through 12. The results indicate that over the last decade, SHS exposure decreased among both nonsmoking and smoking middle and high school students. However, in 2009, 22.8 percent of non-smoking students and 75.3 percent of smoking students still reported SHS exposure in a car within the past week. Among youth, SHS exposure can lead to acute respiratory infections, middle ear disease, delayed lung growth, and more severe asthma. The authors suggest that implementing voluntary smoke-free policies, or expanding existing comprehensive smoke-free policies that prohibit smoking in worksites and public areas, could reduce SHS exposure in motor vehicles among youth.
Investigating the Relation Between Placement of Quit Antismoking Advertisements and Number of Telephone Calls to Quitline: A Semiparametric Modelling Approach.
Erbas B, Bui Q, Huggins R, Harper T, White V. J Epidemiol Community Health 2006;60:180–182.
This study examined the relationship between placement of antismoking advertisements and calls to the Victoria (Australia) Quitline between August 1, 2000 and July 31, 2001. Number of advertisements (impressions) and TARPS were included in the analysis. Results showed that peak calls to Quitline Victoria were Monday – Wednesday, with three times as many calls on those days compared with Sunday. Both placement of Quitline advertisements and an increase in TARPS on a given day increased the number of calls made to the quitline. The authors call for additional analysis of hourly call volume and media data that would provide additional information to assess different media buying strategies that might increase call volume.
Quitlines and Nicotine Replacement for Smoking Cessation: Do We Need to Change Policy?
Pierce JP, Cummins SE, White MM, Humphrey A, Messer K. Annual Review of Public health. 2001 Apr 4. [Epub ahead of print]
This review covers public health initiatives and studies involving quitlines and nicotine replacement for smoking cessation. The authors note that while pharmaceutical cessation aids, quitlines, and physician monitoring can help smokers quit, and while quit attempts have increased, widespread dissemination of these tools to help people quit have not resulted in improved population success rates for quitting. In fact, pharmaceutical advertising may have reduced expectations of how difficult it can be to quit, which reduces success per attempt. In addition, some policies actively discourage quitting without formal assistance, despite the documented success of this approach. The authors conclude there is an urgent need to revisit public policy on smoking cessation.
Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Public Health Volume 33 is March 17, 2012. See http://www.annualreviews.org/catalog/pubdates.aspx for revised estimates.
Use of Smoking Reduction Strategies Among U.S. Tobacco Quitlines.
Asfar T, Ebbert JO, Klesges RC, Klosky JL. Addictive Behavior. 2012 Jan 25. [Epub ahead of print]
This study described existing quitline counseling interventions for smokers who do not quit on their target quit date (TQD) and do not set a new TQD after missing their TQD. All 14 quitline service providers for 50 publicly-funded quitlines in the U.S. were surveyed by telephone. Results showed that all providers recommended setting a new TQD if smokers did not achieve smoking cessation by their initial TQD. The providers for six percent of US state quitlines used motivational interviewing techniques to emphasize the “5R’s” (relevance, risk, rewards, roadblocks, repetition), but the vast majority (providers for 90% of US state quitlines) emphasized reducing the amount and frequency of smoking. The authors conclude that research is needed to evaluate the efficacy of smoking rate reduction methods implemented through quitlines for increasing smoking quit rates.
The Effects of a Multilingual Telephone Quitline for Asian Smokers: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Zhu SH, Cummins SE, Wong S, Gamst AC, Tedeschi GJ, Reyes-Nocon J. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. First published online January 25, 2012.
This study compared the efficacy of a culturally tailored counseling protocol and self-help materials to self-help materials alone for 2,277 Chinese-, Korean-, and Vietnamese-speaking smokers who were first-time callers to the Asian-language lines of the California Smokers’ Helpline. Results showed that telephone counseling doubled the odds of quitting compared to self-help materials in the study participants overall (counseling vs self-help, 16.4% vs 8.0%, difference = 8.4%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 5.7% to 11.1%, P < .001), and within each of the three language groups. The authors conclude that the common counseling protocol could be effectively used with other Asian language speaking populations, and that such protocols should be incorporated into other quitlines, and possibly expanded to other languages.
Using the Internet to Understand Smokers' Treatment Preferences: Informing Strategies to Increase Demand.
Westmaas JL, Abroms L, Bontemps-Jones J, Bauer JE, Bade J. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2011 Aug 26;13(3);e58.
This study explored how Internet seekers of cessation information make judgments about their preferences for treatment, and to identify sociodemographic and other predictors of preferences (e.g., age, level of dependence, or timing of quit date). An online survey was completed by 1196 smokers who visited the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout (GASO) webpage. Overall, 48% of respondents were “quite a bit” or “very much” interested in nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), 45% in a website that provides customized quitting advice, and 37% in prescription medications. Only 11.5% indicated similar interest in quitlines, and 17% in receiving customized text messages. Further analysis showed that interest in treatments formed three clusters that seemed to depend on the level of interpersonal interaction or support the treatment entails. Only 5% of smokers were “quite a bit” or “very much” interested in interpersonal-supportive methods (e.g., telephone counseling, web-based peer support, and in-person group programs), while 25% were interested in nonsocial-informational methods (e.g., Internet programs, tailored emails, informational booklets), and 33% were interested in pharmacotherapy (e.g., NRT, bupropion, and varenicline). One surprising finding was that greater age was associated with a stronger interest in nonsocial-informational methods. Interest in interpersonal-supportive methods was greater if smokers had used a quitline before, or were planning to quit earlier rather than later. Study authors conclude that the results can be used to more effectively target and increase demand for these treatments among smokers searching the Internet for cessation information.
Network Formation, Governance, and Evolution in Public Health: The North American Quitline Consortium Case.
Provan KG, Beagles JE, Leischow SJ. Health Care Management Review. 2011 Oct-Dec;36(4):315-26.
This article describes the evolution of the North American Quitline Consortium (NAQC), a network of U.S. and Canadian organizations that provide telephone-based counseling and related services to tobacco users trying to quit. Interviews, documents, and a survey of NAQC members were used to assess how the network emerged, became formalized, and effectively governed. Findings showed that the form of the network was a product of the interplay between the internal needs and goals of the eventual network members, and state- and provincial-level tobacco quitline organizations. Network formation and governance was also driven by events and influence of major national organizations. The authors point to this example as a way of understanding how the activities of a large number of organizations having a common health goal, but spanning multiple states and countries, might be coordinated and integrated through the establishment of a formal network.
Surveillance of Demographic Characteristics and Health Behaviors Among Adult Cancer Survivors — Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, United States, 2009.
Surveillance Summaries
Underwood JM, Townsend JS, Stewart SL, Buchannan N, Ekwueme DU, Hawkins NA, Li J, Peaker B, Pollack LA, Richards TB, Rim SH, Rohan EA, Sabatino SA, Smith JL, Tai E, Townsend G-A, White A, Fairley TL, Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, CDC. MMWR Surveillance Summaries. January 20, 2012 / 61(SS01);1-23.
This report describes demographic characteristics and health behaviors among adult cancer survivors as measured by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) in 2009. The 2009 BRFSS included questions about previous cancer diagnoses, as well as an optional cancer survivorship module that assessed cancer treatment history and health insurance coverage for cancer survivors. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands administered the core cancer survivorship questions, and 10 states administered the optional supplemental cancer survivorship module. Results showed that 7.2% of the U.S. adult population reported having received a previous cancer diagnoses (excluding nonmelanoma skin cancer). Approximately 15.1% of cancer survivors were current cigarette smokers, 27.5% were obese, and 31.5% had not engaged in any leisure-time physical activity during the past 30 days. The authors conclude that health-care providers and patients should be aware of the importance of preventive care, smoking cessation, regular physical activity, and maintaining a healthy weight for cancer survivors.
Tobacco Quitlines in the United States.
Fildes EE, Wilson MA, Crawford BJ, Kapella-Mshigeni S, Wilson LA, Henkelman W. Nurs Clin North Am. 2012 Mar;47(1):97-107.
This brief article summarizes research showing that the combination of health professionals referring patients to an accessible, evidence-based, cost-effective cessation resource, such as telephone quitlines, can produce a substantial reduction in the number of tobacco users in the United States. The authors conclude that initiatives to increase knowledge and working relationships between nurses and quitlines need to be created, implemented, and evaluated.
Announcements
NALBOH Call for Presentations Deadline: February 10!
The 2012 Annual NALBOH Conference is designed to provide attendees with information about past public health achievements, current public health priorities, and the role of governance in shaping the future of public health. Submit a proposal for a presentation by visiting the link below.
» learn more
New Webinar Series from Break Free Alliance!
This February the Break Free Alliance is hosting a three-part webinar series, Addressing Tobacco Use in Homeless Populations. Dates and titles are listed below. To learn more go to www.healthedcouncil.org.
Wednesday, February 15, 11:00am-12:30pm PST Making the Case: Tobacco-Free Policies and Cessation Programming for Homeless Populations
Wednesday, February 22, 11:00am-12:30pm PST Systems Change: Integrating Tobacco-Free Policies and Cessation Services into Homeless Service Provider Settings
Wednesday, February 29, 11:00am-12:30pm PST Innovative Partnerships: Developing Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs for Homeless and Formerly Homeless Populations
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Save-the-Date: 2/29/12, FDA's Center for Tobacco Products Research Program Public Workshop!
The purpose of the public workshop is to discuss FDA's Center for Tobacco Products' (CTP) research priorities across a broad array of disciplines; increase awareness of barriers and challenges to conducting tobacco product regulatory research; discuss how federal agencies can coordinate tobacco product research; identify how non-government organizations can contribute to advancing tobacco product research.
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Find more Announcements in our Newsroom or go back to top.
Funding for Connections is provided through a contract from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We thank them for their support of this publication. Information and links are provided solely as a service to NAQC members and partners and do not constitute an endorsement of any organization by NAQC, nor should any be inferred.
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