Pregnant women’s perception of the implementation of smoking cessation advice

Objective To assess pregnant smokers'views on smoking cessation advice provided by health professionals who were following specific guidelines. These smoking cessation guidelines consisted of a nine-point intervention framework developed to achieve a reduction in the smoking and pregnancy rate. Design Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Setting The participants were identified from three health and social care settings within one health board in Northern Ireland, namely: a hospital maternity unit, a community midwifery team and a general practitioner (GP) practice. Results Of the nine-point guidelines, some aspects such as establishing if the women smoked and their intention to quit were implemented at all initial consultations. However, none of the respondents reported receiving help in developing a quit plan or about educating their partner and family about the risks of active and passive smoking. Women accepted that assessing smoking status and providing advice was part of routine care and considered that this did not affect their relationship with health professionals. The respondents felt that smoking cessation advice should be sustained throughout pregnancy. Midwives were most likely to provide smoking cessation advice, yet respondents felt their GP to be the most appropriate person to do so. Conclusions These findings have implications for the delivery of smoking cessation advice. Providing appropriate advice and support for pregnant smokers at the end of their pregnancy may be as important as interventions at the beginning. Health professionals should maintain the level of smoking cessation advice provided throughout a woman's pregnancy.