The Effectiveness of a Counselling Program for Smoke-Free Families

Abstract

this is a quasi-experimental research investigating the effectiveness of a counselling program for smoke-free families divided into three aspects: the level of knowledge about cigarettes, the level of intention to quit smoking, and smoking behavior. A purposive sampling technique was used. The participants were 166 smokers from families with either a woman during her pregnancy or post delivery or with healthy children who received medical services from the hospitals taking part in the nurse collaboration program for smoke-free families between May 2009 and January 2010. One group pretest and posttest is a design for the study. The research design is one-group pretest-posttest. The research instruments consisted of a counselling program for smoke-free families, a personal data record form for the participants, a questionnaire on their knowledge about cigarettes, a questionnaire on their intention to quit smoking, and a questionnaire on their smoking behavior. Paired t-test was used for data analysis.

The results indicated that the participants had (1) a significantly higher level of knowledge about cigarettes (p < .001), (2) a significantly higher level of intention to quit smoking (p < .001), and (3) a significantly lower level of smoking (p < .001). The findings revealed that the program was effective in elevating knowledge about cigarettes and the intention to quit smoking as well as in reducing smoking behavior. The result could increase nurse capability in providing counselling in order to create smoke-free families and reducing the effects of complications caused by secondhand smoke on pregnant women, post delivery women, and healthy children.