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Academic Pharmacy in Tobacco Cessation and Control

Tobacco use is a leading cause of death in the United States due to its adverse effects on human health. Health care practitioners have the responsibility and ability to reduce the prevalence of tobacco use significantly. Educating people on the dangers of smoking tobacco is a positive measure towards tobacco cessation. Quitting has positive effects on patients struggling with tobacco use, and clinicians play a significant role in assisting patients quit smoking tobacco.

Cigarette smoking is a leading cause of death in the United States since it causes about 443,585 deaths every year. Tobacco use in America has been so prevalent such that, in the year 2010, the tobacco industry spent $8.5 billion promoting and advertising the product, an amount that surpassed the national budget for tobacco prevention. It is, therefore, a national concern to promote tobacco cessation since a majority of the adult smokers wants to quit smoking and some have even attempted to quit in the past. Pharmacists are the best-placed professionals to facilitate quitting by initiating the necessary efforts or complementing those initiated by other health providers. They can reach out to assist the marginalized groups that have a high prevalence for diseases associated with tobacco because their advice does not need medical insurance or appointment.

A guide provided by the US Public Health Service urges clinicians to incorporate the 5 A’s of tobacco cessation treatment intervention, which are:

Advise tobacco users to quit

Ask about tobacco use

Assess readiness to quit

Assist with quitting

Arrange follow-up care (McBane et al. 5).

In addition, the guide also requires that staff and students in the health profession receive relevant training on effective strategies to facilitate tobacco cessation among the population. All health providers will also be required to have the minimum qualification to offer counseling on tobacco cessation to the users.

The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy acknowledges that promoting health and preventing diseases through educating the public is indispensable. Hence, educating people on tobacco cessation will also be fundamental and should be included in the pharmacy curricula of health professional institutions (McBane et al. 4). This measure will ensure that pharmacy graduates will acquire the necessary knowledge that is evidence-based and requisite skills to assist patients struggling with tobacco use. In addition, professionals teaching subjects related with tobacco cessation should also be competent and enlightened on the content. They should be able to offer relevant counseling on cessation and screen patients for tobacco use as a component of care. The Tobacco Control Committee also urges academic pharmacy to make tobacco cessation and control a priority, and recognize pharmacists as inherent associates of the public health community because they play a significant role in helping patients quit tobacco use and offer them helpful counseling (McBane et al. 2).

Pharmacy organizations have initiated professional based resolutions and policies with the aim of facilitating tobacco cessation and control. However, the professional fraternity has not fully implemented the strategies and integrated them in their practice. All teaching professionals should unite in eliminating tobacco sale in all pharmacies and institutions rendering health care services such as clinics and hospitals (McBane et al. 5). In order to reinforce the policy, the government should discontinue the renewal of existing licenses or issuing of new licenses for pharmacies selling or intending to sell tobacco products. Moreover, only pharmacies and entities not selling tobacco products should be beneficiaries of government-funded prescription programs. This will ensure that sale of tobacco in pharmacies is flushed out completely.

Work Cited

McBane, Sarah, Robin Corelli, Christian Albano, John Conry, Mark Della Paolera, Amy Kennedy, Antoine Jenkins, and Karen Suchanek Hudmon. “The Role of Academic Pharmacy in Tobacco Cessation and Control.” American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education 77.5 (2013): 1-8.