#NoTobaccoChat: A Twitter Discussion on Changing the Default Approach to Tobacco Dependence

Newswise — Currently, tobacco cessation guidelines require healthcare providers to ask patients if they are ready to quit, allowing patients ‘opt-in’ to treatment.

The chat addressed using the ‘opt-out’ approach. An opt-out approach maintains providers should be able to treat patients for tobacco use as they would for anything else negatively impacting patient health. This would allow providers to give medications and counseling resources to all tobacco users regardless of whether or not the patient says they are ready to quit.

Topics included:

• Barriers to successful quitting
• Reasons healthcare providers may be slow to treat tobacco dependence
• Disadvantages of ‘opt-in’ treatment
• Benefits of offering cessation medications and counseling to all smokers
• Impact changing the treatment default could have on cessation rates

Kimber Richter, PhD, director of the UKanQuit tobacco cessation program and professor of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center, and Dr. Delwyn Catley, clinical health psychologyist and professor of Pediatrics and Psychology with Children’s Mercy, provided their expertise to the Twitter discussion. 

Also joining the chat were several nootable participants in the healthcare field including Fox Chase Cancer Center, Roswell Park, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, Truth Initiative, Patricia Mallaber, nurse practitioner at Wilmot Cancer Institute, and Hilary Gee, director of government relations at American Cancer Society Kansas Cancer Action Network. 

A total of 35 active Twitter participants joined the conversation. The chat provided a forum for sharing 250 tweets, 43 retweets, and creating 1.267 million impressions. If you were unable to join the #NoTobaccoChat, view of the discussion here. Currently, guidelines require healthcare providers to ask patients if they are ready to quit so patients opt-in to treatment and may receive medications and counseling.

Pictured in top photo: Dr. Kimber Richter, professor of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center and director of the UKanQuit tobacco cessation program and Lindsey Leesmann, Marketing Senior Web Coordinator, The University of Kansas Health System.
Pictured in bottom photo: Jake Jacobson, Director of Public Relations and Dr. Delwyn Catley, professor of Pediatrics and Psychology, both from Children’s Mercy.