The barriers to quitting: Development of a comprehensive multifactorial model explaining why smokers find it difficult to quit
| Author(s)
Ian Hindmarch, Terry Maguire and Chris Manning
| | Presenter(s) |
Dr Terry Maguire Honorary Senior Lecturer, School of Pharmacy, Queens University, Belfast, Northern Ireland | Abstract Background
Smokers find it difficult to quit; there are other factors to consider beyond the pharmacological effects of nicotine.
Objectives
To develop a comprehensive model including all factors implicated as barriers to quitting.
Methods
A comprehensive literature review identified all major factors previously identified as barriers to quitting. An online questionnaire was developed incorporating all the factors and was completed by 305 dissonant smokers (daily smokers who wanted to reduce and/or quit smoking), 150 GPs, 152 community pharmacists and 150 stop smoking advisers across the UK. Only community pharmacists and GPs who did not personally deliver smoking cessation clinics or interventions were recruited for this study. Results from the questionnaire were analysed using principal components factor analysis.
Results
Factor analysis identified 5-category models in each of the groups of respondents. The five categories: pharmacological, psychological, behavioural, social and sensorial factors were the same across all groups.
Conclusions
A comprehensive five-category model of barriers to quitting has been developed in smokers and healthcare professionals. This may have significant value as a tool in the reduction of smoking prevalence.
| Presenter biography Dr Maguire is a Past President of the Pharmaceutical Society of N. Ireland. He has served on the Belfast Local Commissioning Group (2006-2013), the PharmacyHealthLink and the Crown Review on Prescribing Supply and Administration of Medicines. He was Director of the N. Ireland Centre for Post-graduate Pharmaceutical Education and Training (1997 to 2002) and then worked as a Senior Principle Pharmaceutical Officer, Department of Health Social Services and Public Safety (2002-2004). He served as a member of the UK Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) (2002 – 2006) during which time he chaired the Working Group on Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT). Dr Maguire owns and managers two pharmacies in Belfast, Northern Ireland; he is an honorary Senior Lecturer at the School of Pharmacy, The Queen’s University of Belfast. His research interests include the contribution of community pharmacy to improving public health.
In 1966, Professor Emeritus Ian Hindmarch was appointed to the academic staff of the University of Leeds where, in 1979, he founded the Human Psychopharmacology Research Unit. From 1990-2006 he was the Professor of Human Psychopharmacology and head of the Medical Research Centre at the University of Surrey. He has published over 600 papers in both medical and scientific journals on the psychopharmacological effects of psychoactive drugs (both prescribed and OTC medicines, illicit drugs and social substances - alcohol, caffeine, nicotine) including results of socio-psychological studies of patterns of the use of drugs and attitudinal factors governing substance use.
| Source of funding: Nicoventures Limited. Nicoventures is a consumer healthcare company established to focus exclusively on bringing licensed nicotine products to smokers looking for an alternative to cigarettes. Nicoventures Limited is a stand-alone company within the British American Tobacco Group, managed separately from the tobacco businesses.
| Declaration of interest: All authors received honoraria from Nicoventures for their contribution to this research.
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