Web-Based Training in Tobacco Cessation Interventions for Health ...

Web-Based Training in Tobacco Cessation Interventions
for Health Professionals
Rossie KM, O'Bryan P, Metcalf M, Tanner TB.
Clinical Tools, Inc., Chapel Hill, NC

Abstract
Web-Based Training for Health Professionals in Tobacco Cessation
Interventions
Rossie, K.M., O'Bryan, P., Metcalf, M., Tanner, T.B.
Problem/Objective: To convert a training program for health care
professionals in tobacco cessation interventions into a website in order to
improve the program's usability and ease of deployment.
Methods: The successful National Cancer Institute slide/lecture program,
“How to Help Your Patients Be Tobacco Free” (Mecklenburg 1998, revised
2000) (which included principles from the Public Health Service's Treating
Tobacco Use and Dependence), was converted into a comprehensive, webbased
training program: TobaccoFreePatients.com. The original lecture was
updated, expanded, and translated to language and graphics suitable for
online learning. The resulting courses include: Basic Interventions (also
suitable for training staff), Team Approach, Nicotine Addiction, Drug Therapy,
and several case-based courses that illustrate the interventions in practice
and address the different needs of specific patient populations. A Resources
section includes helpful links, printable forms, and patient educational
materials.
This Internet education solution has several advantages over the
slide/lecture presentation. Few post-development costs are incurred and the
material can be updated more readily. Health care providers can take courses
and refer back to them at their convenience. Continuing education credit is
obtained for free with no waiting.
A prototype version of this program was evaluated by 20 medical
residents using a pretest/post-test methodology.
Evaluation Results: Knowledge and attitudes toward self-efficacy improved
significantly and satisfaction levels were high.
Conclusions: A successful tobacco cessation intervention slide/lecture
training program can be adapted for the Internet effectively, gaining
advantages of convenience and lower cost for both the trainer and trainee as
well as greater content depth.

Conclusion
The results suggest that online
tobacco cessation education for
physicians is likely to have a
positive effect on the frequency
and quality of physician
intervention in tobacco use,
which has been shown to be an
important component of
decreasing tobacco use. Thus,
a tobacco cessation intervention
slide/lecture training program
was successfully translated to
the Internet. Advantages to this
translation include convenience,
lower cost for both trainer and
trainee, as well as the potential
to offer more depth of content.