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Serious Mental Illness and Smoking Cessation Treatment Utilization: the Role of Healthcare Providers

The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research volume 48, pages 63–76 (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

Healthcare provider barriers to cessation resources may be undercutting quit rates for smokers with serious mental illness (SMI). The study aim was to examine how providers influence cessation treatment utilization among smokers with SMI. Data were taken from a trial conducted among smokers in Minnesota Health Care Programs. The sample was split into groups of participants with SMI (n = 939) and without SMI (n = 1382). Analyses assessed whether the association between SMI and treatment utilization was mediated by healthcare provider–delivered treatment advice and healthcare provider bias. Results revealed higher rates of treatment utilization among smokers with SMI than those without SMI (45.9% vs 31.7%, p < 0.001); treatment advice and provider bias did not mediate this association. Subsequent individual regression analyses revealed positive associations between treatment advice and treatment utilization (β 0.21–0.25, p < 0.05), independent of SMI status. Strategies to increase low-income smokers’ contacts with providers may reduce treatment utilization barriers among these smokers.

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Acknowledgments

This material is the result of work supported with resources and the use of facilities at the Minneapolis VA Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research.

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Affiliations

  1. VA HSR&D Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research (CCDOR), Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Patrick J. Hammett PhD, MA, Brent C. Taylor PhD & Steven S. Fu MD, MSCE

  2. Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Patrick J. Hammett PhD, MA, Brent C. Taylor PhD & Steven S. Fu MD, MSCE

  3. Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Harry A. Lando PhD, Rachel Widome PhD, MHS & Darin J. Erickson PhD

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  1. Patrick J. Hammett PhD, MA
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Correspondence to Patrick J. Hammett PhD, MA.

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Hammett, P.J., Taylor, B.C., Lando, H.A. et al. Serious Mental Illness and Smoking Cessation Treatment Utilization: the Role of Healthcare Providers. J Behav Health Serv Res 48, 63–76 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-020-09707-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-020-09707-3