Sebahat GÜCÜK, Hakan DÖLEN, Seçil GÜNHER ARICA, Güzin ZEREN ÖZTÜRK, Yasemin ÇAYIR, Gökçe İŞCAN, Duygu AYHAN BAŞER, Erhan ŞİMŞEK, Abdulkadir KAYA, Meryem Betoş KOÇAK
Türkiye Aile Hekimliği Dergisi - 2026;30(1):11-20
Objective: Tobacco use continues to be one of the most important causes of preventable death and diseases globally. The present study was designed to evaluate the smoking cessation behaviors of patients who referred to smoking cessation clinics operated by family medicine departments at different universities. Methods: The present study was conducted as a cross-sectional study with the participation of 611 individuals who referred to smoking cessation clinics operated by family medicine departments at Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University Faculty of Medicine Training and Research Hospital, Duzce University Faculty of Medicine Hospital, Suleyman Demirel University Faculty of Medicine Hospital, Balıkesir Atatürk City Hospital and who agreed to participate in the study. The survey form includes questions about the patients' demographic information and smoking habits. The participants who agreed to participate in the study were contacted by phone six months later to learn about their smoking status along with the treatment they received. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20, with a significance level set at p<0.05. Results: The study was completed with 611 individuals. Of the participants, 57.9% (n=354) were male, while 42.1% (n=257) were female. The primary reason for starting smoking was reported as friends by 63.7% (n=289). While the mean age of starting smoking was found as 19.69+/-6.91 (min:10-max:50) years in participants who stated that their reason for starting smoking was friends. It was found that 28.8% (n=176) of the participants who referred to the clinic had not previously attempted to quit smoking. Of the participants who had previously attempted to quit smoking, 39.7% (n=173) had decided to refer to the clinic after their first try. It was found that 20% (n=122) of the participants had previously received professional support at least once. At the end of 6 months, it was found that while 72.2% (n=439) of the participants had received pharmacotherapy, 27.8% (n=170) stated that they preferred non-pharmacological treatment. It was also found that 26.2% (n=160) of the participants had completely stopped smoking at the end of six months. The rate of smoking cessation was significantly higher in participants who had received pharmacotherapy (p=0.01). Conclusion: Smoking cessation programs should be addressed in a multidimensional manner. Smoking cessation clinics operated by family medicine departments offer a holistic approach that evaluates individuals not only biomedically, but also with psychosocial, behavioral and environmental aspects.
