S.M.A.R.T. Mothers Are Resisting Tobacco: Prenatal Smoking Cessation in WIC Mothers

• Published in: Journal of allied health Vol. 38; no. 3; pp. 170 - 176
• Main Authors: Edwards, Martha Jo, Geiser, Terri, Chafin, Cynthia, Weatherby, Norman L., Smith, Carol M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington The Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions 01.10.2009; John Colbert; Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions
• Subjects: Counseling; Gynecology; Intervention; Mothers; ORIGINAL ARTICLES; Patients; Pregnancy; Prenatal Care; Public health; Self help; Self Help Programs; Smoking; Smoking cessation; Surgeons General; Tobacco; Womens health; Young Children; United States > US; Tennessee
• ISSN: 0090-7421; 1945-404X

This article presents outcomes of the Smart Mothers Are Resisting Tobacco (S.M.A.R.T. Moms) project, a "5 A's"-based, best-practices intervention for prenatal smoking cessation targeting primarily pregnant WIC patients in Tennessee. Evidence-based training using "5 A's" materials were provided to health care providers. Providers in turn counseled patients on smoking cessation and provided individual cessation treatment plans with educational information and materials. At the conclusion of the 4-year project, 13,285 patients had received counseling and smoking cessation resources through the project. The overall success rate for participants who received counseling and agreed to use the self-help guide was 24.2% vs 20.9% for those who did not choose to use the self-help guide but did receive counseling, exceeding success rates previously found in similar settings. The outcomes of this project support research that even brief tobacco cessation counseling (5 to 15 min), delivered by trained providers and coupled with pregnancy-specific self-help materials, can increase cessation rates in women during pregnancy. Outcomes from this project also support that, when provided with adequate training and pregnancy-specific self-help materials, health care providers will more consistently counsel patients on smoking cessation during pregnancy.