Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences

Published by : PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL PUBLICATIONS

ISSN 1681-715X

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ORIGINAL ARTICLE

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Volume 24

January - March 2008

Number  1


 

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Attitudes, perceptions, habits of smoker,
non-smoker general practitioners and why
they fail to motivate patients to quit smoking

Ahmed Nawaz1, Syed Ali Asghar Naqvi2

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate attitudes, perceptions and habits of General Practitioners (GPs) who smoke and those who do not smoke cigarettes, with particular attention to smoking cessation.

Methodology: Two physician groups were targeted: GPs who smoke and those who do not smoke. They were screened based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A unique country-specific questionnaire was developed to conduct a 20-minute telephonic interview. Survey was started from December 2006 and completed in May 2007. Simple statistical calculations were used to interpret the data.

Results: GPs view smoking as the most harmful behaviour among the risk factors. 94% agreed that smoking should be classified as a medical condition and if it were so would encourage more smokers to quit smoking and they have suggested the need of prescription therapies for their patients to quit smoking.

Conclusion: Significant discontent exists between physicians and smokers. The main cause of this discontent is physician perceived inability to provide successful solutions to quit smoking due to low awareness level and lack of training. This issue, when properly addressed, can be useful as an additional tool to aid patients in quitting.

KEY WORDS: General Practitioners, Smoking Cessation, Physicians, Attitude, Behaviours.

Funding: This study was sponsored by Pfizer laboratories Limited, Pakistan.

Pak J Med Sci    January - March 2008    Vol. 24 No. 1    152-156


1. Dr. Ahmed Nawaz MBBS, MBA
Clinical Research Manager
2. Dr. Syed Ali Asghar Naqvi MBBS
Medical Director
1-2: Pfizer Laboratories Limited,
12 Dockyard Road, West Wharf,
Karachi – 74000, Pakistan

Correspondence

Dr. Ahmed Nawaz
Email: ahmed.nawaz@pfizer.com

* Received for Publication: July 19, 2007

* Revision Received: July 25, 2007

* Revision Accepted: November 3, 2007



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