Counselors’ knowledge of the adoption of tobacco cessation medications in substance abuse treatment programs.

This study assessed counselors’ knowledge of the adoption of evidence-based tobacco cessation medications (TCMs) — varenicline, bupropion, and five nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) — and predictors of adoption in diverse substance abuse treatment settings, using Managing Effective Relationships in Treatment Services (MERITS I) data from 658 counselors working in 26 programs in the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (MERITS I is a CTN platform project funded by NIDA).

Adoption of varenicline was reported by 16% of counselors, bupropion by 11%, and NRTs by 27%. Knowledge of the adoption of all types of TCMs was more likely to be reported by counselors who worked in treatment programs that adhered less to a 12-step orientation and restricted outdoor smoking for employees. Several additional unique predictors of varenicline and NRTs were also identified. More research in this area is needed to continue to identify and better understand predictors (and barriers) of diverse types of TCM adoption.