The effect of tele-consultation counseling on smoking cessation success in smoking cessation therapy: Randomized controlled trial

Aim: In this study, it is aimed to determine the effectiveness of counseling with Tele-Consultation on the success of smoking cessation in individuals. Method: This research is a randomized controlled intervention study conducted on patients who applied to Dokuz Eylul University Family Medicine Department, Smoking Cessation Treatment Outpatient Clinic. Patients aged 18-55 years who applied to the Smoking Cessation Outpatient Clinic were evaluated in terms of inclusion and exclusion, and eligible patients were randomized. Patients were divided into control and intervention groups. The patients in both groups were interviewed face-to-face on the day of registration. Afterwards, patient interviews were conducted with the 10th day, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 6th month of quitting smoking. Patients were interviewed by teleconsultation with the intervention group, and a face-to-face interview was conducted with the control group at the Dokuz Eylül University Family Medicine Department, Smoking Cessation Treatment Outpatient Clinic. The intervention group was counseled by a single physician, while the control group was counseled by the physicians who were currently working in the Smoking Cessation Outpatient Clinic. Patients in both groups were followed for approximately 6 months. On the day of registration, 'Patient Information Form', 'Turkish Version of the Craving Experience Questionnaire', 'Turkish Version of the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence' and 'Turkish Version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale' were administered to each patient. Then, on the 10th day, 1st month, 2nd month and 3rd month of quitting smoking, 'Turkish Version of Modified Morisky Scale', 'Turkish Version of the Craving Experience Questionnaire', 'Treatment Follow-Up Form' were applied. In the 6th month of quitting smoking, 'Turkish Version of the Craving Experience Questionnaire' and 'Treatment Follow-Up Form' were applied to the both groups, 'Turkish Version of Telemedicine Satisfaction Questionnaire' were applied to the intervention group. Research data were evaluated in SPSS (24.0) program. Descriptive analyzes, chi square analysis, independent t test, mcnemar, paired t test and per protocol analyzes were used for statistical analyses. Results: Of the 65 participants, 32 were in the intervention group and 33 were in the control group. The mean age of the intervention group was 38.94 ± 9.41 years, and the control group was 35.15 ± 8.98 years. 31.3% of the 32 participants from the intervention group were female, 68.8% were male; 39.4% of 33 people in the control group were female and 60.6% were male. At the beginning sociodemographic characteristics, smoking characteristics, 'Turkish Version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale' scores and 'Turkish Version of the Craving Experience Questionnaire' scores were found to be similar in both groups. At the 6th month of smoking cessation, there was no difference between the two groups in terms of quitting smoking and 'Turkish Version of Modified Morisky Scale' scores. At the 6th month of quitting smoking, the 'Turkish Version of the Craving Experience Questionnaire' scores and relapse numbers of the intervention group were found to be significantly lower than the control group. It was observed that as the telemedicine satisfaction of the intervention group increased at the 6th month of quitting, smoking cessation rates increased. Conclusion: Smoking causes the death of millions of people every year. However, smoking cessation rates are not at the desired level. Patients who want to quit smoking can not come to their follow-up appointments for various reasons. In order to increase the success of smoking cessation, it is very important to remove the barriers that prevent patients from reaching smoking cessation services. In our study, it was observed that the rate of coming to face to face controls decreased significantly in the control group. Although counseling with tele-consultation did not have a significant effect on smoking cessation, counseling with tele-consultation significantly decreased the number of relapses and cravings of patients. It is important to conduct more comprehensive studies on the effect of teleconsultation on smoking cessation success. Keywords: Family Doctor, Smoking Cessation, Teleconsultation