A Survey of the knowledge and Attitudes of Nurses in the Lagos University Teaching Hospital on tobacco Smoking Cessation

Abstract

Tobacco use has become a major contributor to morbidity and mortality in Nigeria as it has globally. Health workers, particularly nurses could play an important role in the provision of tobacco cessation services in health care settings. This study sought to assess the baseline knowledge, attitude and practice of nurses in Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Lagos, Nigeria, as part of a tobacco cessation training programme for health workers in the institution. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 108 nurses, who attended a one-day training workshop on the role of health workers in tobacco cessation in LUTH in August 2008, using a pre-tested self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was done using SPSS 16.0. Only 18.5% had good level of knowledge regarding tobacco use and cessation. The attitude of the nurses was relatively positive and 85.8% agreed that it was their responsibility to help their patients quit smoking and that patients who were smokers were likely to yield to counselling when offered by health workers. Only about half (51%) of the study participants routinely asked patients about their smoking status at first visit while 49% routinely offered some cessation advice. Majority (81%) were willing to spend at least five minutes of their time to assist their patients in quitting. Those who had received prior training on tobacco cessation had higher levels of knowledge but not necessarily better attitudes or practices compared with those who did not have prior training. The nurses surveyed have a poor level of knowledge and lack training on tobacco cessation. A significant proportion however had positive attitudes and were willing to assist their patients in quitting tobacco use. Regular training for nurses to equip them with the knowledge and skills to support and assist patients in quitting tobacco use are recommended.

Key words: tobacco cessation, nurses