MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among three secondary schools located in Kudat district, Sabah, Malaysia during the period from June until September 2012. The protocol of this study was approved by ethics committee of Management and Science University, Malaysia. The aims were explained and a consent form was signed by each participant. Respondents were chosen randomly from each school with the help of the headmasters. Self-administrated questionnaires, covering socio-demographic characteristics and general knowledge of lung cancer, were distributed. Once all 150 respondents completed the questionnaire, they passed it to their head master for collecting and recording. All the data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 13. ANOVA and t-test were applied for univariate analysis; and multiple linear regression for multivariate analysis.
RESULTS: A total of 150 male secondary school teachers participated in this study. Their mean age was 35.6 ∓ 6.5 (SD); maximum 50 and minimum 23 years old. More than half of the participants were Malay and married (52%, 79%; respectively). Regarding the knowledge about lung cancer, 57.3% of the participants mentioned that only males are affected by lung cancer. Some 70.7% mentioned that lung cancer can be transmitted from one person to another. More than half (56.7%) reported that lung cancer is not the leading cause of death in Malaysian males. As for risk factors, the majority reported that family history of lung cancer is not involved. However, 91.3% were aware that cigarettes are the main risk factor of lung cancer and more than half (52%) believed that second-hand smoking is one of the risk factor of lung cancer. More than half (51.3%) were not aware that asbestos, ionizing radiation and other cancer causing substances are risk factors for lung cancer. Quitting smoking, avoiding second-hand smoking and avoiding unnecessary x-ray image of the chest (53.3%, 96.0%, 87.3%; respectively) are the main preventive measures mentioned by the participants. For the factors that influence the participants knowledge, univariate and multivariate analysis showed that only race was significant.
CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the knowledge of school male teachers about lung cancer was low. However, few items were scored high: cigarettes are the main risk factor; avoiding second-hand smoking; and avoiding x-rays. Interventions to increase lung cancer awareness are needed to improve early detection behavior. Increase the price of pack of cigarettes to RM 20 and banning smoking in public places such as restaurants are highly recommended as primary preventive measures.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analysed internationally comparable representative household survey data from 33,482 respondents aged ≥ 15 years in Indonesia, Malaysia, Romania, Argentina and Nigeria for determinants of tobacco use within each country. Socio-demographic variables analysed included gender, age, residency, education, wealth index and awareness of smoking health consequences. Current tobacco use was defined as smoking or use of smokeless tobacco daily or occasionally.
RESULTS: The overall prevalence of tobacco use varied from 5.5% in Nigeria to 35.7% in Indonesia and was significantly higher among males than females in all five countries. Odds ratios for current tobacco use were significantly higher among males for all countries [with the greatest odds among Indonesian men (OR=67.4, 95% CI: 51.2-88.7)] and among urban dwellers in Romania. The odds of current tobacco use decreased as age increased for all countries except Nigeria where. The reverse was true for Argentina and Nigeria. Significant trends for decreasing tobacco use with increasing educational levels and wealth index were seen in Indonesia, Malaysia and Romania. Significant negative associations between current tobacco use and awareness of adverse health consequences of smoking were found in all countries except Argentina.
CONCLUSIONS: Males and the socially and economically disadvantaged populations are at the greatest risk of tobacco use. Tobacco control interventions maybe tailored to this segment of population and incorporate educational interventions to increase knowledge of adverse health consequences of smoking.
METHODS/DESIGN: The study will be a prospective randomized controlled trial comparing an intensive tobacco-related education program versus non-tobacco-related training on pharmacists' tobacco-use-related knowledge, attitudes, self-efficacy, and skills. Community pharmacists practicing in Qatar will be eligible for participation in the study. A random sample of pharmacists will be selected for participation. Consenting participants will be randomly allocated to intervention or control groups. Participants in the intervention group will receive an intensive education program delivered by a multi-disciplinary group of educators, researchers, and clinicians with expertise in tobacco cessation. A short didactic session on a non-tobacco-related topic will be delivered to pharmacists in the control group. The study has two primary outcomes: post-intervention tobacco-related knowledge and post-intervention skills for tobacco cessation assessed using a multiple-choice-based evaluation instrument and an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), respectively. The secondary study outcomes are post-intervention attitudes towards tobacco cessation and self-efficacy in tobacco-cessation interventions assessed using a survey instrument. An additional secondary study outcome is the post-intervention performance difference in relation to tobacco-cessation skills in the practice setting assessed using the simulated client approach.
DISCUSSION: If demonstrated to be effective, this education program will be considered as a model that Qatar and the Middle East region can apply to overcome the burden of tobacco-use disorder.
TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT03518476 . Registered on 8 May 2018. Version 1/22 June 2018.