Ease nicotine cravings and help your patient quit tobacco

Posted on October 23, 2017 by Monica Mewshaw

In the Cancer Prevention Department/Nicotine Dependence Program, one of our primary areas of focus is tobacco treatment for our inpatient population as well as our community.  Tobacco treatment requires engagement from the entire health care team.  We encourage physicians and nurses to recognize patients who are admitted to the hospital and are current tobacco users.  Both physicians and nurses can place a tobacco cessation consult for a patient.  In an effort to increase the number of referrals we receive and reach more patients, we want to remind nurses that they are able to place a referral with a few easy clicks. 

We recognize how much is asked of floor nurses with the increased acuity of patients, all of the necessary documentation, and direct patient care.  However, ensuring the comfort of nicotine dependent patients by may actually help reduce patient anxiety and improve patient satisfaction.  Our number one priority, whether the patient is ready to quit tobacco or not, is to provide strategies that ease nicotine cravings while they are hospitalized, including obtaining orders for nicotine replacement therapy, relaxation techniques, or just talking through the concerns related to tobacco use and their diagnosis.

In order to boost inpatient tobacco treatment referrals and increase awareness of inpatient tobacco treatment, we plan to distribute small reminder cards that have on how to place referrals, as well as, available resources for patients. Please feel free to call our department with any questions and encourage your nurses to ask questions when they see us making our daily inpatient rounds.

-Joanne H. Ebner, BSN, RN, OCN, C-TTS, Supervisor, Cancer Prevention