Barriers and facilitators to tobacco cessation in a nationwide sample of addiction treatment programs.

Smoking rates among addiction treatment clients are 3-4 times higher than those of the general population. Recent studies indicate that ceasing tobacco use during treatment may improve recovery outcomes. Across the United States, publicly funded addiction treatment programs vary widely in terms of their tobacco policies and tobacco cessation services offered to clients. This study recruited 24 programs from a random sample of publicly funded programs participating in the NIDA Clinical Trials Network. Semi-structured interviews were administered by phone to program directors. ATLAS.ti software was used to facilitate thematic analysis of interview transcripts.

While all directors expressed interest in helping clients to quit smoking, they cited numerous barriers to implementing tobacco policies and services. These included smoking culture, client resistance, lack of resources, staff smoking, and environmental barriers. Directors also cited several factors that they believed would support tobacco cessation. These included financial support, enhanced leadership, and state mandates against smoking in addiction treatment programs.

Conclusions: Addiction treatment programs are beginning to place more emphasis on tobacco cessation during treatment. However, furthering this goal requires substantial infrastructural and cultural change. These qualitative study findings may help encourage Single State Agencies (SSAs) to support publicly funded addiction treatment programs in their tobacco cessation efforts. In order to maximize effectiveness, state-level policies regarding tobacco cessation during treatment should be informed by ongoing dialogue between service providers and SSAs.