Smoking Habits and Workplace Health Promotion among University Students in Southern Italy: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Investigation

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 19; no. 17; p. 10682
• Main Authors: Garzillo, Elpidio Maria, Monaco, Maria Grazia Lourdes, Corvino, Anna Rita, Giardiello, Alessia, Arnese, Antonio, Napolitano, Francesco, Di Giuseppe, Gabriella, Lamberti, Monica
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 27.08.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Addictions; Adult; Alcohol; Alcoholic beverages; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Cigarette smoking; Cigarette Smoking - epidemiology; Cigarettes; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data collection; Female; Gender; Habits; Health care; Health Promotion; Health surveillance; Humans; Italy - epidemiology; Male; Males; Medical personnel; Occupational health; Pilot Projects; Prevalence; Professions; Public health; Questionnaires; Risk analysis; Risk factors; Sex differences; Smoking; Smoking Cessation; Sociodemographics; Statistical analysis; Students; Students, Medical; Surveys and Questionnaires; Tobacco; Tobacco smoking; University students; Workplace; Italy; Europe; workplace health promotion (WHP); tobacco smoking; medical students; health professional students; health promotion; occupational health; public health
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191710682

The study aimed to investigate the tobacco smoking prevalence, habits and awareness among a cohort of healthcare students from a university hospital in southern Italy and the associations with socio-demographic determinants. A secondary outcome was to estimate the educational needs to receive information on smoking-related risk factors. Five hundred and forty-nine students completed a self-administered questionnaire (180 male and 369 female, average age 25 yo, ±5.9 SD), enrolled from October 2018 to November 2019 at the University of Naples 'Luigi Vanvitelli', and the collected data were analysed by descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. The sample's prevalence of current smokers was 25.3%, without a significant sex difference. The multiple logistic regression model showed the link between smoking habits and alcoholic beverage consumption ( < 0.001) and living with smokers ( = 0.003). The enrolled cohort does not seem to need more information about the risks of cigarette smoking ( = 0.028). The data analysis and the comparison with the current literature allowed the authors to hypothesise a training model to be adopted within a workplace health promotion programme managed by an occupational physician. This model included targeted training for smoking dissuasion, focusing on sex and gender, cohabitant's influence, and combined addiction management. Further research will focus on the effectiveness of these proposed models.