Modeling influences on acute care nurses' engagement in tobacco use reduction

Although nurses are encouraged to address patients' tobacco use, the integration of tobacco reduction into practice has not been consistent. An organizational behavior perspective was used to conceptualize hypothesized relationships among reported influencing factors (individual characteristics, role attitudes, perceived barriers, and workplace climate). Survey data collected at two Western Canadian hospitals (N = 214 nurses; 58% response) were used to test the model. The final model explained nearly 60% of variation in the nurses' tobacco reduction practice. Role attitude, perceived resource availability, co-worker's activities, and ability were the strongest contributors. Nurses' smoking status indirectly influenced practice through shaping role attitudes and perceived ability. Diverse leverage points to enhance nurses' involvement in patients' tobacco use were identified.