What's in the web for family physicians - smoking cessation

Alfred KY Tang 鄧權恩

Tobacco control office, Department of Health
衛生署戒煙服務簡介
http://www.tobaccocontrol.gov.hk/eng/index.html

This is the official website of the Tobacco Control Office, Department of Health. It is a well designed website with abundant and useful information on resources on smoking cessation. Tobacco related statistics, relevant international links and related references on Internet, facts and FAQs on smoking cessation, pharmacotherapy and cessation services offered by different centres in Hong Kong are listed.

Medline Pluss
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/smokingcessation.html

A resourceful website on smoking cessation hosted by National Institute of Health (NIH). Apart from overviews of NIH, health check tools, coping tips and related issues on smoking cessation are included. Research, clinical trials and statistics on smoking cessation are made available. There are also information on smoking cessation for teenagers, women and seniors.

Clinical Guideline on Smoking Cessation [2006 update]
http://cme.med.umich.edu/iCME/SmokingCessation06/

The content of this CME activity is a guideline for smoking cessation endorsed by the University of Michigan Health System and is updated regularly. The Guideline is a PDF file consisting of twelve pages of text and tables that are easy to read. It can be downloaded from the website free of charge. The knowledge test is immediately scored and correct answers explained.

Medscape: Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/493447_1

An informative CME module on treating tobacco use and dependence can be found at the Medscape website. Up to 3 modules are available. Strategies for both patients who are ready to quit, and those who are not ready to make a quit attempt are listed. Tips on combination pharmcotherapy and how to prevent relapses are also available. To access the CME modules, registration with Medscape, which is free of charge, is required.

WHO: Tobacco Free Initiative
http://www.who.int/tobacco/en/

The Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI) was established in July 1998 to pull together international attention, resources and action on the global tobacco epidemic. Available online are publications on the practical elements of various tobacco control measures. This publication arose from the realization that although various official WHO documents called for the development of national capacity for tobacco control, no comprehensive publication for tobacco control capacity development at the national level existed. It addresses the tobacco issues and provides practical advice for setting up viable national tobacco control programmes.

Whyquit.com: Never Take Another Puff
http://whyquit.com/joel/ntap.pdf

The website has an online eBook intended for medical professionals on the subject of smoking cessation. Physicians may download and make copies for patients. Entitled "Never Take Another Puff", the eBook is available in PDF format (141 pages). Resources and materials help patients quit smoking or end dependence upon other forms of nicotine delivery.

Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence
http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/tobacco/tobaqrg.htm

This Quick Reference Guide for Clinicians contains strategies and recommendations designed to assist family physicians in identifying and assessing tobacco users and in delivering effective tobacco dependence interventions. The reference guide was based on systematic review and analysis of scientific literature, and uses the results of more than 50 meta-analyses. This Quick Reference Guide summarizes the guideline strategies for providing appropriate treatments on smoking cessation.