Specialist cancer hospital-based smoking cessation service provision in Ireland

While much progress has been made in reducing tobacco use in many countries, both active and passive smoking remain challenges. The benefits of smoking cessation are universally recognized, and the hospital setting is an ideal setting where smokers can access smoking cessation services as hospital admission can be a cue to action. Consistent delivery of good quality smoking cessation care across health services is an important focus for reducing the harm of tobacco use, especially among continued smokers.

Our objective was to document the smoking cessation medication and support services provided by specialist adult cancer hospitals across Ireland, a country with a stated tobacco endgame goal.

A cross-sectional survey based on recent national clinical guidelines was used to determine smoking cessation care delivery across eight specialist adult cancer tertiary referral university hospitals and one specialist radiotherapy center. Survey responses were collected using Qualtrics, a secure online survey software tool. The data was grouped, anonymized, and analyzed in Microsoft Excel.

All responding hospitals demonstrated either some level of smoking cessation information or a service available to patients. However, there is substantial variation in the type and level of smoking cessation information offered, making access to smoking cessation services inconsistent and inequitable.

The recently launched National Clinical Guideline for smoking cessation provides the template for all hospitals to ensure health services are in a position to contribute to Ireland's tobacco endgame goal.