Smoking cessation advice from health professionals: process evaluation of a community-based program.

Abstract The study assessed whether exposure to advice to quit smoking from health care professionals was greater in North Karelia, an area with a community-based, long-term intervention integrated within the health care structure, than in the rest of Finland. Data were collected by health behavior surveys during 1978–1995. Adult regular smokers and those who had quit during the preceding 12 months were surveyed. We measured exposure to cessation advice by questioning, whether the person had been advised by a doctor or public health nurse to give up smoking at least once during the year preceding the survey. Men from the intervention area had a significantly higher likelihood of having been advised to quit than those elsewhere in Finland. The same trend emerged among women, but it was not significant. It is concluded that a community-based intervention program can encourage health professionals to increase their smoking cessation advice.