Implementation of an "opt-out" tobacco treatment program in six hospitals in South Carolina.

OBJECTIVE: Describe the screening, referral, and treatment delivery associated with an opt-out tobacco treatment program (TTP) implemented in six hospitals varying in size, rurality and patient populations. METHODS: Between March 6, 2021 and December 17, 2021, adult patients (≥ 18 years) admitted to six hospitals affiliated with the Medical University of South Carolina were screened for smoking status. The hospitals ranged in size from 82 to 715 beds. Those currently smoking were automatically referred to one of two tobacco treatment options: 1) Enhanced care (EC) where patients could receive a bedside consult by a trained tobacco treatment specialist plus an automated post-discharge follow-up call designed to connect those smoking to the South Carolina Quitline (SCQL); or 2) Basic care (BC) consisting of the post-discharge follow-up call only. An attempt was made to survey patients at 6-weeks after hospitalization to assess smoking status. RESULTS: Smoking prevalence ranged from 14 to 49% across the six hospitals; 6,000 patients were referred to the TTP.The delivery of the bedside consult varied across the hospitals with the lowest in the Charleston hospitals which had the highest caseload of referred patients per specialist. Among patients who received a consult visit during their hospitalization, 50% accepted the consult, 8% opted out, 3% claimed not to be current smokers, and 38% were unavailable at the time of the consult visit. Most of those enrolled in the TTP were long-term daily smokers.Forty-three percent of patients eligible for the automated post-discharge follow-up call answered the call, of those, 61% reported smoking in the past seven days, and of those, 34% accepted the referral to theSCQL. Among the 986 of patients surveyed at 6-weeks after hospitalization quit rates ranged from 20%-30% based on duration of reported cessation and were similar between hospitals and for patients assigned to EC versus BC intervention groups. CONCLUSION: Findings demonstrate the broad reach of an opt-out TTP. Elements of treatment delivery can be improved by addressing patient-to-staffing ratios, improving systems to prescribe stop smoking medications for patients at discharge and linking patients to stop smoking services after hospital discharge.

Implementation of an "Opt-Out" Tobacco Treatment Program in Six Hospitals in South Carolina.

Objective: To describe the implementation an opt-out tobacco treatment program (TTP) in 6 diverse hospitals located in different regions of South Carolina. Methods: Between March 8, 2021 and December 17, 2021, adult patients (≥ 18 years) admitted to 6 hospitals affiliated with the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) were screened for their cigarette status. Patients who smoked cigarettes were referred to an TTP offering a brief bedside consult and automated post-discharge follow-up calls with an opportunity to receive a referral to the South Carolina Quitline (SCQL). The hospitals included in this study ranged in size from 82 to 715 beds with diverse patient populations. Herein, we report on the results of screening and referring patients to the TTP, delivery of smoking cessation treatments, and patient smoking status assessed in a sample of patients followed 6-weeks after discharge from the hospital. Results: Smoking prevalence ranged from 14-49% across the 6 hospitals. Among eligible patients reached, 85.6% accepted the bedside consult. Only 3.4% of patients reached were deemed ineligible because they claimed not to be currently smoking cigarettes. The automated post-discharge follow-up calls were answered by 43% of patients, with about a third of those who had relapsed back to smoking accepting the offer of a referral to the SCQL. Overall, about half of the 6,000 patients referred to the TTP received some type of treatment. Self-reported smoking abstinence rates assessed 6-weeks after discharge were similar across the five acute care hospitals ranging from about 20-30%. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate the broad reach of implementing an opt-out TTP for patients in hospitals of varying size, rurality and patient populations.

Tobacco Treatment Outcomes for Hospital Patients With and Without Mental Health Diagnoses.

Background: The prevalence of mental health conditions is higher in cigarette smokers than nonsmokers. However, those with diagnosed mental health disorders are understudied within general inpatient hospital settings. This study seeks to evaluate how having a mental health diagnosis influences response to a brief opt-out inpatient tobacco treatment intervention. Methods: Data included 4,153 admitted patients who completed a tobacco treatment visit. Post-discharge self-reported abstinence was obtained via response to an automated call 1-month after discharge. Mental health co-morbidities were assessed by reviewing electronic medical records. Logistic regression was used to assess associations between having a mental health diagnosis and patients' smoking history, interest in quitting smoking, and post-discharge abstinence. Results: Overall 34.1% of patients were diagnosed with mental health disorders, most commonly depression or substance use disorders. Patients with a diagnosed mental health disorder were more likely to report a history of long-term heavy smoking and were less likely to express an interesting in remaining abstinent from smoking after hospitalization. An intent-to-treat analysis using logistic regression analysis found lower rates of self-reported smoking abstinence in those with a mental health disorder compared to those without (9 vs. 13.2%, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Patients with a history of mental health diagnoses, such as depression or substance use disorders, was associated with lower rates of smoking abstinence in patients after hospitalization. Hospital based opt-out smoking cessation programs have shown to be generally effective and efficient. However, certain subpopulations may require tailored intervention in order to improve treatment outcomes. Future research is needed to develop brief, effective tobacco treatment for hospital patients with comorbid mental health diagnoses.