Pharmacists' smoking cessation counseling practices: a comparison between 2005 and 2010

To determine if smoking cessation counseling practices and related psychosocial characteristics improved among pharmacists between 2005 and 2010.

Data were collected in 2005 and 2010 from randomly selected pharmacists in Québec, Canada. Participants completed mailed self-report questionnaires on cessation counseling practices and psychosocial characteristics (i.e., belief that counseling is the role of pharmacists, self-efficacy, barriers, and knowledge of community resources). The association between each of year and training (either during or after undergraduate studies) and each outcome was investigated in each sex separately with multiple linear regression models using pooled data across 2005 and 2010.

Among female pharmacists, cessation counseling for patients ready to quit improved over time. Training during and after undergraduate studies was significantly associated with higher self-efficacy, better knowledge of community resources, and improved counseling for patients ready and not ready to quit. Also, training after studies was significantly associated with more advantageous beliefs about counseling. Among male pharmacists, knowledge of community resources and perceived barriers to counseling improved over time, but there were no significant differences in cessation counseling. Training during and after undergraduate studies was significantly associated with higher self-efficacy. Training during undergraduate studies was also associated with higher counseling score in patients ready to quit, and training after studies was associated with better knowledge of community resources.

Smoking cessation counseling for patients ready to quit improved from 2005 to 2010 among female pharmacists but not among male pharmacists. Training is generally associated with improved counseling and improved cessation-related psychosocial characteristics.