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December 2012
Time-Sensitive News
SAVE THE DATE: FY2012 NAQC Annual Survey to be Fielded in January 2012!
NAQC is in the process of finalizing its 2012 annual survey of quitlines with a workgroup of NAQC members. The survey is scheduled to launch in mid-January, and will be open for at least 60 days to accommodate various reporting schedules, New Year Resolution call volume increases, and other events and obligations. An advance copy of the survey questionnaire will be circulated as soon as it is finalized. For more information or for questions, please contact NAQC’s Director of Research, Jessie Saul, at jsaul@naquitline.org.
Deadline: January 14, 2013! Call for Comments on E-Referrals Due Jan 14, 2013!
The Office of the National Coordinator (ONC ) for Health Information Technology published a call for comments on its draft recommendations for the Stage 3 definition of meaningful use of electronic health records. The request for comment is comprised of three sections: 1) meaningful use objectives and measures; 2) quality measures; and 3) privacy and security. All public comments on ONC’s draft recommendations must be submitted before midnight (Eastern time) on January 14, 2013.
NAQC plans to submit comments regarding electronic referral for quitlines. We will distribute NAQC’s draft comments to members and partners before Christmas. We encourage all members and partners to review our comments, provide feedback to us and submit your own individual comments to ONC as well.
» learn more
Deadline: January 15, 2013! RFP from the State of North Dakota!
The State of North Dakota has released an RFP for cessation services to any interested parties. Please note any inquiries should be directed to the Procurement Officer as shown on the cover page of the document located at the link below.
» learn more
Planning for New Year’s Quits! Tips From former Smokers Media Campaign!
Can you believe it’s almost 2013? Last week, CDC reminded PSA Directors at radio stations around the country about CDC’s Tips From former Smokers campaign and the great opportunity that New Year’s resolution time presents to encourage smokers to quit. CDC encourages state tobacco control programs to take advantage of this opportunity and follow up with your radio station PSA Directors to reinforce this effort, and to let them know more about your programs as well. You can even suggest that they promote New Year’s resolutions to quit smoking on their radio shows, provide facts and information about the benefits of quitting, and even offer to participate in the discussion. For a copy of CDC’s letter to PSA Directors and the PSAs (in English and Spanish), click here.
» learn more
First Quarter 2013! Second Annual Tips from Former Smokers Media Campaign!
We expect a second Tips campaign to run in the first quarter of 2013. NAQC will provide more details as they become available.
Deadline: February 13, 2013! Call for Abstracts: Nat'l Smokeless and Spit Tobacco Summit!
The National Steering Committee invites your participation in helping to advance leadership, research, and programs aimed at reducing the threat posed by the use of smokeless and spit tobacco products. Currently, the Summit is the only national conference devoted to sharing the science and solutions on the smokeless tobacco problem. The Summit will be held on the University of Montana campus and will provide an open forum to discuss a variety of key aspects which define the health and social implications of using smokeless and spit tobacco products. The Summit is titled "Empowering Advocates for the Next Frontier in Smokeless Tobacco" and will take place on August 6 - 8, 2013.
Guidelines for Abstract Submissions:
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All abstracts should be submitted via the On-line Abstract Submission System.
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Create an on-line profile to include basic contact information and a Presenter Bio.
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Abstracts should address at least ONE of the main conference topic areas.
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Abstracts should contain a TITLE, DESCRIPTION, a minimum of 3 LEARNING OBJECTIVES, and at least 1 RECOMMENDED ACTION participants can take post-conference as a result of attending the proposed session.
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Recommended actions should indicate how the proposed/included content can be used by conference attendees to connect with necessary resources, communicate with priority populations and/or offer specific actions to be taken to more confidently address the smokeless and spit tobacco challenge.
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Abstracts should be written in non-technical language, as practical.
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The Abstract DESCRIPTION should be limited to 500 words or less.
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Abstracts will be judged on originality, clarity of thought and writing, relevance to a main conference focus area, practical application, and timeliness.
» learn more
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NAQC News
UPCOMING WEBINARS: 2013 NAQC Webinar Series!
Since 2004, NAQC has used conference call and webinar technology to offer members and partners an opportunity to dialogue with colleagues and experts from across North America on critical quitline-related topics. Each webinar serves as a vehicle to encourage dialogue on promising and better practices, new research findings, and implementation successes and challenges in order to improve quality, increase understanding of the evidence base, and ensure maximized access, use and effectiveness of quitline services.
We invite you to take a look at the first two 2013 NAQC Webinar topics below. Webinar topics in 2013 will continue to focus primarily on the impacts of healthcare reform, national promotion efforts (including graphic health warning labels and media campaigns), and emerging technologies on our work – as a quitline community and as members of the broader tobacco control community.
Webinars are 1.5 hours long and hosted on one Wednesday each month.
Please email Tamatha Thomas-Haase at tthomas-haase@naquitline.org should you have any questions or concerns related to the webinar series. We look forward to your participation!
January 16, 2013
12:30 – 2PM ET
Quitline Cost Sharing Models: New Research to Inform Our Practice
Public-private cost sharing partnerships provide states with a way to increase reach without increasing their financial costs to operate quitline services. Such partnerships distribute costs between state tobacco programs and private payers such as health insurance companies, employer groups and unions. Additionally, as more states engage in cost-sharing partnerships, it is essential to compile information to help inform national and state efforts.
In this webinar, Julie Rainey and Vanessa Klisch from Professional Data Analysts, Inc. (PDA) will share their recent research findings on existing cost-sharing models discovered through a series of interviews with state quitline administrators and service providers and present considerations for states employing different models. Jessie Saul, NAQC’s Director of Research, will introduce new NAQC Annual Survey of Quitlines questions based on the cost-sharing typology developed by PDA in order to capture a broader view of these efforts and discuss ways that findings might be used to track progress and improve practice.
February 13, 2013
12:30 – 2PM ET
Integrating Chronic Disease Management into Quitline Services*** STILL LOOKING FOR PRESENTERS!!! Contact Tamatha at tthomas-haase@naquitline.org.
Several years ago, NAQC conducted an informal survey of quitline funders to highlight the growing linkages between quitlines and chronic disease programs. This webinar will feature examples of quitlines that have integrated interventions into their service offerings and highlight their measured impact and lessons learned.
» register today!
Quitline Service Offering Models Issue Paper: Executive Summary and Supporting Documents are Now Available!
In September, NAQC published Quitline Service Offering Models: A Review of the Evidence and Recommendations for Practice in Times of Limited Resources and we are pleased to announce that an Executive Summary was developed to serve as a quick reference for quitline decision makers. In addition to the Executive Summary, a 2-page table was developed as a quick reference of service delivery options broken out by high and low resources. For a summary of the literature, or details on specific studies, please see the full paper. The full paper also makes many recommendations for research. These recommendations have been summarized separately and are encompassed by the research priority areas listed in the NAQC Research Agenda for Quitlines
» learn more
FY2011 NAQC Annual Survey Results are Now Available Online!
We are pleased to announce that the results of the FY2011 NAQC Annual Survey of Quitlines are now available on the 2011 Survey page. Detailed quitline-specific tables similar to those posted for 2009 and 2010 have also been posted on the 2011 Survey page. Emails containing benchmarking details on treatment reach, spending per smoker (services & medications), and quit rates, as well as all quitline metrics that will be posted on each quitline’s profile page, were sent out during the week of September 3. If you expected to receive benchmarking data for your quitline and did not, please contact Jessie Saul, NAQC’s Director of Research, at jsaul@naquitline.org.
Please Remember to Share Your RFPs with NAQC Members!
Please note that NAQC offers a few communication channels for distributing your RFPs. Please feel free to post your RFPs to the NAQC member-only Listserv or send a blurb to communications@naquitline.org for inclusion in the monthly issues of Connections. Please provide an 8-week notice in order to ensure vendors have adequate time to reply to the RFP.
Please Keep Your Member Profile Current!
Take a few minutes to make sure that your NAQC member information is up-to-date. To do so, please log into your membership account and click on the "profile home" link located on the right hand side of the screen. Please make sure to review your e-mail, telephone number, and title information.
Find more NAQC News in our Newsroom or go back to top.
Tobacco Control
FDA Actions Related to Nicotine Replacement Therapies and Smoking-Cessation Products: Report to Congress on Innovative Products and Treatments for Tobacco Dependence; Public Hearing; Request for Comments!
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a 1-day public hearing, “FDA Actions Related to Nicotine Replacement Therapies and Smoking-Cessation Products; Report to Congress on Innovative Products and Treatments for Tobacco Dependence,” on December 17, 2012.
FDA is interested in obtaining input on certain questions related to the implementation of section 918 of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act, a provision that was added by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009.
Topics on which input is sought include applicable approval mechanisms and additional indications for nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs), and the regulation and development of innovative products and treatments for tobacco dependence.
FDA is seeking input from interested stakeholders, including manufacturers, industry and professional organizations, the public health community, individuals affected by tobacco dependence, researchers, health care professionals, and the public. Attendance is free and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
Please find additional meeting details in the Federal Register notice: http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FDA-2012-N-1148-0001
» learn more
Report on Cessation Coverage!
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids has released a report on insurance coverage of tobacco cessation services that was conducted by Georgetown University researchers.
Researchers performed a comprehensive analysis of 39 insurance contracts currently being sold in six states. The report finds that many insurers are not covering tobacco cessation treatments found to be effective by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and required by the Affordable Care Act. Many policies contain confusing and conflicting language that could leave consumers uncertain if tobacco cessation treatments are covered. Many policies also include significant gaps in coverage for cessation counseling and medications and contain cost-sharing requirements that appear to conflict with the law.
» learn more
DC Circuit Won't Hear Appeal in Graphic Warning Labels Case!
The US Government’s request for an appeal in the graphic warning label case has been denied. The U.S. Justice Department now will determine whether or not to appeal to the Supreme Court. As discussed at the link below, the government has 90 days to make a decision. If it decides to make an appeal to the Supreme Court, it will be the last opportunity to gain approval to move forward with graphic warnings. These two stories provide background on the court’s decision.
» learn more
Pfizer Launches Chantix YouTube Channel!
Pfizer recently launched its new branded consumer YouTube channel for CHANTIX® (varenicline) tablets called The Quitting Smoking Channel. The YouTube channel will initially house 13 videos that highlight various topics including tools to quitting smoking, the importance of smoking cessation, treatment options for smoking cessation, the important of support in quitting smoking, all from the point of view of a physician, tobacco treatment specialist, successful CHANTIX quitter, and potential CHANTIX quitter.
This channel is meant to encourage smokers to think about quitting smoking and to talk to their doctors about CHANTIX. Pfizer hopes that the channel will inspire smokers to think about making a new quit attempt, think differently about the important role of a plan to quit smoking that includes support and, ultimately, to talk to their health care professionals to discuss options.
For more information, please visit the channel at www.youtube.com/quitsmokinginfo.
» learn more
Find more Tobacco Control in our Newsroom or go back to top.
Research
Mobile Phone-based Interventions for Smoking Cessation.
Whittaker R, McRobbie H, Bullen C, Borland R, Rodgers A, Gu Y. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012 Nov 14;11:CD006611.
This Cochrane review examined mobile phone-based interventions, and whether they are effective at helping smokers quit. Randomized or quasi-randomized trials were included in the review of any type of mobile phone-based intervention. Five studies with at least six month cessation outcomes were included. Three studies involved a purely text messaging intervention, one study was a multi-arm study of a text messaging intervention and an internet QuitCoach separately and in combination, and the final study involved a video messaging intervention delivered via the mobile phone. Results showed that when results were pooled, mobile phone interventions were shown to increase six month quit rates compared with control programs (RR 1.71, 95% CI 1.47-1.99). The authors conclude that more research is required into other forms of mobile phone-based interventions for smoking cessation, other contexts such as low income countries, and cost-effectiveness.
Utilizing Clinical Support Staff and Electronic Health Records to Increase Tobacco Use Documentation and Referrals to a State Quitline.
Greenwood DA, Parise CA, Macaller TA, Hankins AI, Harms KR, Pratt LS, Olveda JE, Buss KA. J Vasc Nurs. 2012 Dec;30(4):107-11.
This study examined whether incorporation of a workflow in the electronic health record (EHR) that empowered medical assistants (MA) to become tobacco-cessation promoters, would increase tobacco documentation and referral for cessation counseling to quitlines. MAs in three primary care centers were trained to ask every patient, at every visit, about tobacco use then document this status in the EHR. Patients ready to quit were electronically referred to the quitline for tobacco cessation counseling. Documentation of tobacco status, ongoing verification of tobacco use, and chief complaint recording was compared before and after the intervention. Results showed that initial documentation and ongoing verification of tobacco use increased after implementation of the HER workflow. The authors conclude that documentation and referrals for smoking cessation can be increased in organizations using EHR by empowering MAs to promote tobacco cessation and providing electronic referral options.
Design Considerations in Developing a Text Messaging Program Aimed at Smoking Cessation.
Ybarra ML, Holtrop JS, Bağci Bosi AT, Emri S. J Med Internet Res. 2012 Jul 24;14(4):e103.
This article aimed to fill a gap in the literature by discussing the protocol decisions and content development for a smoking cessation text messaging program for adult smokers in Turkey. Content was developed in English and translated into Turkish. Evidence-based smoking cessation theory was used to ground the protocol and content. At the same time, cultural aspects of smoking and quitting in Turkey were also incorporated. The intervention designers considered whether to provide cell phones and whether to reimburse participants for texting costs; whether to include supplementary intervention resources (eg, personal contact); and whether to utilize unidirectional versus bidirectional messaging. Program design considerations included how messages were tailored to the quitting curve and one's smoking status after one's quit date, the number of messages participants received per day, and over what period of time the intervention lasted. The authors concluded that the content and methods of effective smoking cessation quitline programs were a useful guide in developing the texting program, and also propsed guidelines for developing other similar programs.
A Pragmatic Trial in the Rio de Janeiro Subway to Capture Smokers for a Quitline: Methodological Challenges and Opportunities.
Szklo AS, da Silva Freire Coutinho E, Reichenheim ME. J Health Commun. 2012;17(8):899-914. Epub 2012 Apr 18.
This article discusses challenges and solutions in designing a study to evaluate the effect of two different communication strategies ("gains from quitting" vs. "losses from continuing smoking") in encouraging calls to a quitline. The authors conducted an intervention study in two subway stations for 4 weeks, considering only 1 strategy per station. Large posters containing non-age-specific images and texts, on the basis of the theme"shortness of breath," were displayed on central dividing columns on the boarding platforms. Call rates from the selected stations, and respective rate ratios, overall and per study week, were calculated. Passengers who were smokers, exposed to the positive-content message, called on average 1.7 times more often than did those exposed to the negative-content message (p = .01). Moreover, call rate ratios did not decline over the 4 weeks of the study (p = .40). The effectiveness findings suggest that antismoking campaigns could use positive-content messages in order to recruit a larger smoker population. The authors note that the proposed methodology can also be used to evaluate effectiveness of messages for "capturing" individuals with other health problems (e.g., alcohol abuse), thereby increasing its potential impact.
Cigarette Taxes and the Federal Budget — Report from the CBO.
Baumgardner JR; Bilheimer LT; Booth MB; Carrington WJ; Duchovny NJ; Werble EC. N Engl J Med. Nov. 29, 2012; 367:2068-2070.
The CBO modeled a hypothetical policy for reducing smoking: an increase of 50 cents per pack in the federal excise tax on cigarettes. (The increase would be indexed over time to keep pace with inflation and with growth in average income. Such a policy lies within the range of previous legislative changes to the federal excise tax, currently at $1.01 per pack.) The CBO's modeling approach entailed following predicted cohorts of smokers and people who would have been smokers in the absence of the policy and comparing their expected mortality rates, expected annual per capita spending for their health care, and their projected earnings under current law and under the policy. The results showed that a tobacco tax indexed to inflation could contribute both to better health and lower federal expenses; over 10 years a 50 cent tax indexed to inflation would cut the federal deficit by $41 billion.
Indoor Air Quality at Nine Large-Hub Airports With and Without Designated Smoking Areas — United States, October–November 2012.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, MMWR Weekly. Nov. 23, 2012;61(46):948;951.
This study measured air pollution levels from secondhand smoke in airports that have dedicated smoking areas (restaurants, bars, or ventilated smoking rooms) and in airports that do not have such areas. Results showed that average air pollution levels from secondhand smoke directly outside designated smoking areas in airports are five times higher than levels in smoke-free airports. In addition, air pollution levels inside designated smoking areas were 23 times higher than levels in smoke-free airports. Five of the 29 largest airports in the United States allow smoking in designated areas that are accessible to the public. The airports that allow smoking include Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport, McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Denver International Airport, and Salt Lake City International Airport. More than 110 million passenger boardings—about 15 percent of all U.S. air travel—occurred at these five airports last year.
Current Cigarette Smoking Among Adults — United States, 2011.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. MMWR Weekly. Nov. 9, 2012;61(44).
The 2011 National Health Interview Survey was administered by in-person interview and included 33,014 adults aged >18 years from among the non-institutionalized, U.S. civilian population. In 2011 an estimated 19.0% (43.8 million) of U.S. adults were current cigarette smokers.
On the one hand, the study reports significant progress among young adults aged 18-24, for whom the rate of smoking dropped sharply between 2005 and 2011, from 24.4 percent to 18.9 percent (a 22.5 percent decline). On the other hand, the study finds that, between 2005 and 2011, the proportion of U.S. adults who were current smokers declined at a much slower clip (falling from 20.9 percent to 19.0 percent), and no significant change occurred between 2010 (19.3 percent) and 2011 (19.0 percent). Moreover, while the percent of adult daily smokers who smoke 30 or more cigarettes per day dropped from 12.6 percent in 2005 to 9.1 percent in 2011, the percent who smoke 1–9 cigarettes per day actually increased, from 16.4 percent to 22.0 percent during the same period. Dr. Tim McAfee, Director of the CDC's Office on Smoking and Health, has underscored the significance of this latter finding, noting in an interview with U.S. News and World Report that "Smoking fewer cigarettes is not a substitute for quitting. If you go from smoking 20 cigarettes to 10 you aren't cutting your risk in half."
Prevalence rates were examined by various demographic breakdowns as follows:
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Demographic group |
Smoking Prevalence Among Adults (2011) |
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Age |
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18-24 |
18.9% |
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25-44 |
22.1% |
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45-64 |
21.4% |
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65+ |
7.9% |
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Race/Ethnicity |
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Non-Hispanic Whites |
20.6% |
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Non-Hispanic Blacks |
19.4% |
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Hispanics |
12.9% |
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American Indian/Alaska Natives |
31.5% |
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Asians |
9.9% |
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Educational level |
Highest among 25+ with GED (45.3%) and decreased with educational level |
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SES/Income |
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Below Federal poverty line |
20.9% |
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Above Federal poverty line |
17.9% |
The authors conclude that the findings underscore the need for fuller implementation of evidence-based interventions that are proven to reduce smoking prevalence. These include increasing the price of tobacco products, implementing comprehensive smoke-free policies, running hard-hitting media campaigns and enforcing restrictions on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Announcements
Deadline: February 20, 2013! Early Bird Registration Now Open for SBM 2013!
Early bird registration for SBM’s 34th Annual Meeting and Scientific Sessions in San Francisco, California, is officially open. The conference will be held at the centrally-located Hilton Union Square in beautiful downtown San Francisco from March 20-23, 2013. Pre-conference day activities for March 19 are being planned. Early bird registration, which offers discounted registration fees, closes February 20, 2013.
Embodying the meeting theme, "Technology: The Excitement and The Evidence,” the conference will explore the many ways that technological innovations are expanding the reach and impact of behavioral medicine. Abstracts addressing thematic areas of the conference will be presented as will submissions coinciding with other behavioral medicine topics.
» learn more
NAQC Has Moved!
As of December 1, 2012 you can reach us at:
3219 E. Camelback Road, #416
Phoenix, AZ 85018
Phone/Fax: 800-398-5489
www.naquitline.org
Please update your records accordingly!
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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