Collaborative Approach Between Health Professionals to Smoking Cessation Among Students in Albacete: A Peer-to-Peer...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Professions Education
• Tobacco Control

Background:

• Smoking remains a primary preventable cause of illness and death in Spain, disproportionately affecting young individuals.
• Universities represent a critical setting for developing and implementing targeted tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To equip health professionals and Health Sciences students with skills in smoking prevention and cessation.
• To implement peer-to-peer interventions within university and high school settings to reduce youth tobacco use.

Main Methods:

• A multi-phase approach including a postgraduate online course for professionals.
• Face-to-face workshops for students, focusing on cessation support and counseling techniques.
• Supervised student-led interventions in educational environments, with rigorous evaluation through pre/post-tests and satisfaction surveys.

Main Results:

• Enhanced knowledge and skills among participants in smoking prevention and cessation strategies.
• Reduction in tobacco consumption among young participants engaged in healthier educational spaces.
• Generation of valuable data for informing future public health policies on smoking.

Conclusions:

• Early intervention is crucial for mitigating the public health burden of smoking and preventing addiction transmission.
• The project's scalable model holds potential for integration into university curricula and influencing policy.
• Creating healthier educational environments is vital for combating youth smoking.