A recent publication by researchers from Monash and Deakin Universities has examined the impact of smoking cessation advice on patient experience of care. The nationwide survey, conducted on adults over 35 years who had visited their GP in the past year, assessed whether frequency of advice to quit smoking impacts patient rating of care.
The survey was conducted with 886 participants (611 current smokers, 275 ex-smokers) aged over 35. Questions focused on smoking history, care experiences, anticipation of stigma, and smoking cessation advice received.
Only 48.8% of current smokers reported ‘always’ or ‘usually’ being advised to quit smoking by their GP. While current smokers experienced higher anticipated stigma and were more likely to delay seeking care, frequent advice to quit correlated with higher ratings of care quality.
These results show that asking about smoking and providing advice to quit smoking was acceptable to most respondents and was associated with higher ratings of quality of care. Importantly, advice should be provided in a way that motivates and avoids stigmatising patients.
See resources for providing best practice smoking cessation care:
- Guideline: RACGP Supporting smoking and vaping cessation: a guide for health professionals (PDF)
- Guideline: Supporting smoking cessation in pregnancy and breastfeeding - general practice version (PDF)
- Helping patients to stop smoking: a guide for general practitioners (PDF)
- Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) Tool
- Drug Interactions with Smoking table (PDF)
References:
1. Barton C WM, Selamoglu M, Madawala S, Enticott J, Sturgiss E, George J, Borland R. Impact of advice to quit smoking on rating of care and anticipation of stigma in primary care. Primary Health Care Research & Development. 2025;26(1–9).