Tobacco-free School Policy in Maharashtra, India: A Qualitative Exploration of Implementation Facilitators and Barriers

Chatterjee, Nilesh; Patil, D. B.; Kadam, Rajashree; Fernandes, Genevie

doi:10.14485/hbpr.5.3.3

Cited by 5 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, the question remains as to why this intervention only facilitated 37.8% in attaining all TFS criteria. While this study did not examine the barriers to adherence with all TFS criteria, a previous qualitative study revealed factors such as disinterested teachers, lack of ownership by the school management and community norms surrounding tobacco use as barriers to fulfilment of TFS criteria, and that teachers, who successfully made their school tobacco-free, were driven by a personal mission of tobacco-eradication or drive for social change 25 . Future teacher training will need to incorporate methods to reinforce and sustain this sense of purpose.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 87%

“…Despite the existing TFS policy measures since 2009, government schools in the state have struggled with understanding and implementing tobacco-free schools 24 . Salaam Mumbai Foundation (SMF), a non-governmental organization (NGO) that works to prevent tobacco use among children, collaborated with the State Education Department to train teachers to implement the TFS policy 25,26 . This study used a post-only quasi-experimental design to gather information on the fulfillment of the 11 TFS criteria ( Table 1) from randomly selected upper-primary (5th to 7th grade) and secondary (8th to 10th grade) government schools in four districts in Maharashtra.…”

Section: Study Setting and Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Testing the effectiveness of a teacher-training intervention to make schools tobacco-free in India: Results from a quasi-experimental post-only study

Chatterjee¹,

Patil²,

Kadam³

2020

Popul. Med.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

INTRODUCTION Tobacco-free schools (TFS) are critical for preventing tobacco-use among adolescents, who constitute nearly 21% of India's population. This study tested the effectiveness of a teacher-training intervention for achieving tobacco-free schools in the state of Maharashtra in India. METHODS A quasi-experimental post-only study was conducted in four districts in Maharashtra state. Starting in 2013, designated teachers from 2188 government schools in two intervention districts received a day-long tobacco-free school training intervention each year for five years. About 1707 similar schools in two comparison districts did not receive the intervention. At the end of five years, in 2018, we assessed adherence to 11 TFS criteria by visiting randomly selected schools in the intervention and comparison districts. RESULTS In intervention districts, 37.8% (34) of visited schools fulfilled all 11 TFS criteria, 34.4% (31) fulfilled 7-10, and 27.8% (25) schools fulfilled ≤6 criteria. This was significantly (p<0.001) higher than in comparison schools, where none fulfilled all 11 criteria, 13.2% (9) met 7-10, and 86.8% (59) fulfilled ≤6 criteria. CONCLUSIONS The TFS intervention achieved 100% fulfillment in nearly two out of five schools, with another one in three schools fulfilling 7-10 criteria; in contrast, 4 out of 5 schools in the comparison districts fulfilled ≤6 criteria. The proportion of tobacco-free schools can be increased and the process accelerated in rural districts by adding more components to the existing teacher training intervention.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 87%

Section: Study Setting and Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testing the effectiveness of a teacher-training intervention to make schools tobacco-free in India: Results from a quasi-experimental post-only study

Chatterjee¹,

Patil²,

Kadam³

2020

Popul. Med.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In contrast, Assam, with very low compliance with 6b (3%) despite collaboration with the civil societies, was reported due to easy access to tobacco products to the youth because of their sale near EIs on carts,[ 33 ] in tuck shops, etc. [ 23 , 36 ] Also, it could be due to (1) vendors either not displaying the signboards of “No Sale to the Minors”[ 34 , 36 - 38 ] or these not confirming the age of the children,[ 23 , 41 ] (2) an overall increased density of shops,[ 42 ] (3) inability to prohibit new establishments,[ 43 ] or to displace the old tobacco outlets,[ 36 ] and (4) the porous state borders[ 37 ] encouraging easy availability of the illicit products through the grey market. [ 36 , 44 ] It was also attributed to the ignorance of the EI heads of the law[ 45 ] or their inability to challan the violators.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…TFI : Nationally, compliance has been the poorest at 26.81% [ Table 3 ]. Poorer compliance in the states like UP, MP, and Rajasthan was the result of the indifference of the education and health department towards its stricter enforcement provision of law[ 36 , 43 ] and the inability of the State Tobacco Control Cell (STCC) to reach the schools to implement tobacco-free schools. [ 43 ] Contrary to this, its higher compliance in Kerala (76.3%) was attributed to the implementation of Section 6b since 2011–12 itself [ Figures 2 and 3 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compliance of Sections 4–7 of Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003 in India—A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Shetiya¹,

Deshmukh²,

Gupta³

2023

Indian Journal of Community Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In view of the vast variability of the compliance of Sections 4-7 of COTPA in India, a need for a collective evaluation appeared appropriate and timely. The aim of this review was to specifically analyze the country wide compliance of Section 4,5,6a and 6b,7 of COTPA along with the displays of signage on No Smoking (NoSmok) and Tobacco Free Institution (TFI). Studies published between 2003-December 2020 reporting compliance/non compliance (C/NC) were reviewed. Eligible study designs were observational studies and brief reports. To obtain the effect measure, Med Calc version 20 was used. 60 full text articles were assessed for eligibility and included in the qualitative and quantitative synthesis. The compliance for the Sections 4,5, 6b and 7 was 71.97% (95%CI:61.87-81.05, I2 =99.70%), 58.95% (95%CI:44.90-72.28, I2=99.53%), 51.08% (95% CI:39.30-62.81, I2=99.46%), 57.60% (95%CI:37.58-76.40, I2=99.48%) respectively whereas for the NoSmok and TFI board display it was 42.30% (95%CI:32.53-52.39, I2=99.75%) and 26.81% (95%CI:9.94-48.25, I2=99.51) respectively. Compliance of the Section 6a, sale of tobacco products to and by the minors was 66.39% (CI:49.50-81.36, I2=99.69%) and 94.11% (95%CI:78.54-99.99, I2=99.76%) respectively. This study observed a significant variability in compliance of Sections 4-7 of COTPA. It points to a critical need for a robust, self – sustained and effective enforcement mechanism countrywide to eliminate potential for any NC. Amendments to the COTPA appear critical for a policy reform and an optimal implementation.

show abstract

“…Our study interviewees emphasised that improved enforcement and implementation require collaborative multisectoral partnerships, which include schools, parents, officials at all levels (national, state and district), local representatives, civil society and government health and non-health departments. The multistakeholder partnerships have been observed to be beneficial in reducing tobacco use in many parts of the world 17 86 87. For instance, in New Zealand almost all educational institutes that have declared themselves 100% tobacco-free reported collaboration with external providers 88…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Programme and policy perspectives towards a tobacco-free generation in India: findings from a qualitative study

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ObjectiveThis study explored multistakeholder perspectives on existing adolescent-specific tobacco control policies and programmes, to advance India’s transition towards a tobacco-free generation.DesignQualitative semi-structured interviews.SettingInterviews were conducted with officials involved in tobacco control at the national (India), state (Karnataka), district (Udupi) and village level. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.ParticipantsThirty-eight individuals representing national (n=9), state (n=9), district (n=14) and village (n=6) levels, participated.ResultsThe study findings highlighted the need to strengthen and amend the existing Tobacco Control Law (2003) provisions, particularly in the vicinity of schools (Sections 6a and 6b). Increasing the minimum legal age to buy tobacco from 18 to 21 years, developing an ‘application’ for ‘compliance and monitoring indicators’ in Tobacco-Free Educational Institution guidelines were proposed. Policies to address smokeless tobacco use, stricter enforcement including regular monitoring of existing programmes, and robust evaluation of policies was underscored. Engaging adolescents to co-create interventions was advocated, along with integrating national tobacco control programmes into existing school and adolescent health programmes, using both an intersectoral and whole-societal approach to prevent tobacco use, were recommended. Finally, stakeholders mentioned that when drafting and implementing a comprehensive national tobacco control policy, there is a need to adopt a vision striving toward a tobacco-free generation.ConclusionStrengthening and developing tobacco control programmes and policies are warranted which are monitored and evaluated rigorously, and where adolescents should be involved, accordingly.

show abstract

Tobacco-free School Policy in Maharashtra, India: A Qualitative Exploration of Implementation Facilitators and Barriers

Cited by 5 publications

References 0 publications

Testing the effectiveness of a teacher-training intervention to make schools tobacco-free in India: Results from a quasi-experimental post-only study

Testing the effectiveness of a teacher-training intervention to make schools tobacco-free in India: Results from a quasi-experimental post-only study

Compliance of Sections 4–7 of Cigarette and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003 in India—A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Programme and policy perspectives towards a tobacco-free generation in India: findings from a qualitative study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About