Effectiveness of a smoking cessation program among low-income pregnant women

Abstract

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of a smoking cessation program. Method: A one-group pretest–posttest quasi-experimental study was performed with 42 pregnant women, who lived in İzmir city center, earned less than $4.3/day, and were 12–20 week pregnant. The smoking cessation program included 6 face-to-face interviews at the family practice centers. The effectiveness of the intervention program was evaluated by measuring the exhaled CO level, cotinine level in the urine, and the results of the health belief model in pregnant women. Results: The results of the study showed that the post-intervention smoking cessation rate of the pregnant women was 42.9%, and a statistically significant difference was found between the cotinine ratios in the urine and expiratory CO levels before and after the intervention. A statistically significant difference was observed between the mean scores of sensitivity, severity, motivation, benefit, disability, and self-efficacy perception regarding smoking during pregnancy before the intervention in pregnant women who smoked after the intervention. Conclusion: Questioning the habit of cigarette smoking during pregnancy and providing professional consultation for overcoming the obstacles in quitting smoking were successful methods for cessation of smoking among pregnant women, and those were considered as the first step by nurses for overcoming this smoking addiction.