Effect of population based tobacco cessation treatment in India

Tobacco use remains a leading preventable cause of morbidity and mortality globally. The state of Jharkhand faces challenges because multiple forms of tobacco are in widespread use and limited resources are available for tobacco control. There is paucity of information related to the effectiveness of community-based tobacco cessation intervention and oral cancer screening program in Jharkhand therefore there is need for the present study. This quasi-experimental study in Ranchi district, Jharkhand, evaluated the effectiveness of an integrated, population-based tobacco cessation intervention implemented in Ayushman Aarogya Mandirs. The intervention comprised pharmacotherapy, behavioural counselling, and capacity building of community health workers. After one year, 657 of 4429 participants achieved cessation, representing a quit rate of 15.03% indicating the effectiveness of involving community health workers at grass root level. Findings demonstrate that combination therapy is more effective than behaviour counselling alone. Thus, we show the value of integrated cessation strategies in public health interventions, particularly in settings with a high burden of tobacco use.