Smoking Cessation: It All Begins and Ends with Your Patient

Every single U.S. Surgeon General has stated that one of the most pivotal and impactful healthcare professional efforts is educating and guiding patients around smoking cessation. Given that half a million Americans die from tobacco-related concerns every single year, this topic is perhaps of the largest concern for every single healthcare professional in our country. However, clinicians often juggle intense schedules and countless distractions while trying to provide patient care, and need efficient strategies and accessible information to help patients. Our country has not had a U.S. Surgeon General over the past few decades to avoid the general theme of smoking cessation being the single most important effort to discuss with respective patients. Can, or should, vaping be utilized as smoking cessation? To answer this question, and countless others, we as healthcare professionals truly need to understand the mindset of someone choosing to smoke tobacco or vape, along with the products being utilized, and the available cessation agents, to ultimately even attempt to have continual and impactful conversations with our patients. Join our discussion to “clear the air” on how to best improve and save the lives of our patients currently smoking or vaping.