No abstract

The Smoke-free Environment Policy was effective in reducing visitors and staff observed smoking on hospital grounds, but had little effect on inpatients' smoking. Identifying strategies to effectively manage nicotine addiction and promote cessation amongst hospital inpatients remains a key priority.

Objective: The study sought to measure the relative efficiency of different television advertisements and types of television programmes in which advertisements were placed, in generating calls to Australia's national Quitline. Design: The study entailed an analysis of the number of calls generated to the Quitline relative to the weight of advertising exposure (in target audience rating points (TARPs) for particular television advertisements and for placement of these advertisements in particular types of television programmes. A total of 238 television advertisement placements and 1769 calls to the Quitline were analysed in Sydney and Melbourne. Results: The more graphic "eye" advertisement conveying new information about the association between smoking and macular degeneration leading to blindness was more efficient in generating quitline calls than the "tar" advertisement, which reinforced the message of tar in a smoker's lungs. Combining the health effects advertisements with a quitline modelling advertisement tended to increase the efficiency of generating Quitline calls. Placing advertisements in lower involvement programmes appears to provide greater efficiency in generating Quitline calls than in higher involvement programmes. Conclusions: Tobacco control campaign planners can increase the number of calls to telephone quitlines by assessing the efficiency of particular advertisements to generate such calls. Pairing of health effect and quitline modelling advertisements can increase efficiency in generating calls. Placement of advertisements in lower involvement programme types may increase efficiency in generating Quitline calls.

Waterpipe tobacco (WT) smoking is traditionally practised in the Orient.1 Waterpipe is known by many names, including narghila, nargila, shisha and goza.2 WT smoking involves burning the tobacco with embers or charcoal. The smoke is filtered through a bowl of water and then drawn through a rubber hose to a mouthpiece and inhaled through the mouth. 2The available research suggests that significant adverse health effects are associated with active and passive WT smoke; it is not a safe form of tobacco smoking.2-4 Researchers overseas have expressed concerns about the rising prevalence of WT smoking since the 1990s and erroneous consumer beliefs of relative safety compared with cigarette smoking. 2To our knowledge, we were the first to report the prevalence of WT smoking in an Australian population.5 A telephone survey of tobacco use among Arabic-speakers residing in south-west Sydney found 11.4% current prevalence (1% daily) of WT smoking. The data also indicated Arabic-speakers believed WT smoking was less harmful than cigarettes.To better understand the determinants of WT smoking and to identify at-risk groups, we further analysed this existing data 5 and focused on WT smoking and respondents' knowledge of its harms. We performed bivariate (cross-tabular) and multiple logistic regression analyses to explore the independent factors associated with WT smoking with WT smoking knowledge score, socio-economic and demographic characteristics. We found that current cigarette/cigar/pipe (CCP) smoking status, being aged 40-59, and having low to moderate WT smoking knowledge independently predicted WT smoking prevalence (Table 1). One-quarter of all current CCP smokers smoked WT at least occasionally, while only 7% of ex-CCP smokers and 7% of those who had never smoked CCP smoked WT at least occasionally. The most popular places to smoke WT reported by current WT smokers were at home (outdoors) 65%; at friends' and relatives' homes (outdoors) 50%; and at Arabic cafes (outdoors) 32%. Respondents who did not smoke WT were significantly more likely to agree with the statements 'smoking narghila/shisha (WT) is harmful to your health' (82% vs. 71%, p= ≤0.01) and that 'smoke inhaled from narghila/shisha (WT) contains harmful chemicals' (74% vs. 64%, p=≤0.05).We believe the main tobacco control priority for Arabicspeakers should remain focused on reducing cigarette smoking prevalence for several reasons. First, there is a low prevalence of WT smoking compared with CCP smoking prevalence (11.4% vs. 26%).5 Second, our analysis shows that CCP smoking status is the strongest predictor of WT smoking, with current CCP smokers being more than four times more likely to use waterpipe than non-CCP smokers. Finally, despite mistaken beliefs of the relative safety of WT compared with cigarette smoking, we are not alarmed about potential switching as only one ex-CCP smoker (out of 1,102 respondents) also reported smoking WT on a daily basis.Nevertheless, some specific strategies for WT smoking are still warranted as almost half of all WT smo...

Agreement was demonstrated between EMS and ED GCS scores but not RR and SBP recordings. Discrepancies appeared to reflect physiological changes in response to EMS initiated interventions. Trauma triage algorithms and risk models might need to take these measurement differences, and factors associated with them, into account.