Comparative Effectiveness of Two Tobacco Cessation Interventions for Employees of Partners HealthCare, Inc. (PiHQ)

Mass General Brigham

Status: Completed

Conditions: Tobacco Use Disorder; Smoking Cessation

Treatments: Behavioral: Internal tobacco coach; Behavioral: External tobacco coach

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; Industry

Identifiers

NCT02601521

2015P000002/MGH

Details and patient eligibility

About

Specific Aim: To conduct a randomized controlled trial among permanent employees of Partners HealthCare, Inc., and their adult dependents, who are current tobacco smokers. The trial will compare two interventions designed to help smokers stop using tobacco: (1) External Coaching Program (Standard Care) and (2) Internal Coaching Program, a chronic disease management strategy for treating tobacco use and dependence.

Enrollment: 106 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Current permanent employee of Partners Healthcare, Inc. or their adult dependent
• Current tobacco smoker (smoked a cigarette, even a puff, in the past 30 days)

Exclusion criteria

• Temporary, per diem or former employee of Partners Healthcare, Inc.
• Plan to leave Partners employment in the next 12 months
• Inability to give informed consent or participate in counseling due to serious psychiatric disorder or cognitive disorder

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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106 participants in 2 patient groups

Internal coaching program

Experimental group

Description:

The internal coaching program uses a chronic disease management strategy to treat tobacco use and dependence. The program provides evidence-based treatment consisting of up to 12 months of services from a tobacco coach based at Partners HealthCare. The tobacco coach offers (1) repeated smoking cessation counseling delivered by proactive telephone calls, emails, and interactive voice response \[automated phone calls\] and (2) facilitated access to a new Partners HealthCare Inc., health insurance benefit that provides access to all FDA-approved smoking cessation medications without copay or prior approval.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Internal tobacco coach

External coaching program

Active Comparator group

Description:

The external coaching program consists of referral to the Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program's Smokers Helpline, a free program offering multi-session proactive telephone counseling for 3 months to individuals who are ready to quit smoking. Individuals in this arm also receive information about Partners HealthCare, Inc.'s new health insurance benefit that provides access to all FDA-approved smoking cessation medications without copay or prior approval.

Treatment:

Behavioral: External tobacco coach