Smoking and Mental Illness: Prevalence, Patterns and Correlates of Smoking and Smoking Cessation among Psychiatric Patients

• Main Authors: P. V. Asharani, Vanessa Ai Ling Seet, Edimansyah Abdin, Fiona Devi Siva Kumar, Peizhi Wang, Kumarasan Roystonn, Ying Ying Lee, Laxman Cetty, Wen Lin Teh, Swapna Verma, Yee Ming Mok, Daniel Shuen Sheng Fung, Siow Ann Chong, Mythily Subramaniam
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-08-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: smoking cessation; electronic nicotine delivery systems; smokers; past smokers
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/15/5571

This study aims to understand (a) the prevalence and correlates of smoking in a psychiatric population, (b) factors that encourage smoking cessation, and (c) awareness towards cessation programmes. This study captured data (<i>n</i> = 380) through a modified version of the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS). A descriptive analysis of the data was performed. The prevalence of smoking was 39.5% (<i>n</i> = 150) and 52.3% of the smokers were dependent on nicotine. More than half of the smokers had made at least one attempt to quit in the past 12 months and 56% reported no immediate plans to quit smoking. The awareness towards institutional smoking cessation programmes was fair (44%), with 49.7% of smokers having indicated that they were willing to use the service upon referral. Smokers endorsed that increasing the cost of cigarettes, restricting availability, and increasing knowledge of health harms could encourage smoking cessation. Past smokers reported that self-determination/willpower followed by substitution of smoking with other types of foods and drinks were factors that helped them achieve successful cessation. Given that the readiness to quit and awareness towards cessation programmes are low among the smokers, concerted efforts through educational programmes and policy changes are crucial to achieve successful cessation.