Office-based training in tobacco cessation for dental professionals

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Dental Medicine
• Addiction Science

Background:

• Tobacco use remains a significant public health concern.
• Dental professionals are uniquely positioned to address tobacco cessation.
• Existing training programs for dental professionals require evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of a brief, on-site training on dental professionals' tobacco cessation activities.
• To measure changes in the time dental professionals dedicate to tobacco cessation interventions.
• To evaluate patient outcomes related to tobacco cessation following dental professional training.

Main Methods:

• A 90-minute on-site training session was delivered to 293 dental professionals from 57 offices.
• Pre-training and follow-up surveys were used to assess changes in tobacco cessation activities and time spent.
• Patient cessation outcomes were estimated three months post-training.

Main Results:

• Statistically significant increases were observed in 12 tobacco cessation activities (P < .001).
• A significant increase in the time spent on tobacco cessation activities was reported (P < .001).
• On average, two patients per office had stopped using tobacco, two had relapsed, and eight were considering cessation at follow-up.

Conclusions:

• A brief, on-site training significantly enhances dental professionals' engagement in tobacco cessation activities.
• The training appears to positively influence patient tobacco use behaviors, including successful cessation and contemplation.
• Integrating tobacco cessation training into dental professional education is a viable strategy for public health improvement.