Tobacco Induced Diseases BioMed Central Research Open Access Promoting cessation and a tobacco free future: willingness of pharmacy students at the University of Lagos, Nigeria Bolajoko A Aina*1, Adebayo T Onajole†2, Babatunde MO Lawal†3 and Opeoluwa O Oyerinde†4 Address: 1Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Biopharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos, Idi Araba Campus, Lagos, Nigeria, 2Department of Community Health, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Idi Araba Campus, Lagos, Nigeria, 3Medical Department, UACN Plc, UAC House, 1-5 Odunlami St., Lagos, Nigeria and 4Pharmacy Department, Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesha, Oshun State, Nigeria Email: Bolajoko A Aina* - [email protected]; Adebayo T Onajole - [email protected]; Babatunde MO Lawal - [email protected]; Opeoluwa O Oyerinde - [email protected] * Corresponding author †Equal contributors Published: 22 August 2009 Received: 7 May 2009 Accepted: 22 August 2009 Tobacco Induced Diseases 2009, 5:13 doi:10.1186/1617-9625-5-13 This article is available from: http://www.tobaccoinduceddiseases.com/content/5/1/13 © 2009 Aina et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Abstract Background: Tobacco use is projected to cause nearly 450 million deaths worldwide during the next 50 years. Health professionals can have a critical role in reducing tobacco use. Therefore, one of the strategies to reduce the number of smoking-related deaths is to encourage the involvement of health professionals in tobacco-use prevention and cessation counseling. As future health care providers, pharmacy students should consider providing assistance to others to overcome tobacco use and be involved in promoting a tobacco free future as part of their professional responsibility. This research was to determine the knowledge of tobacco/smoking policy, willingness to be involved in tobacco cessation, attitude to keeping a tobacco free environment and the smoking habit among pharmacy students at the University of Lagos. Methods: Data was collected by the use of self administered questionnaire which was aimed at assessing their smoking habit, determining their knowledge and attitude to smoking policy and willingness to be involved in smoking cessation. The population sample was all the pharmacy students in their professional years (200 to 500 Levels) at Idi-Araba Campus of the University of Lagos. Results: Out of 327 qualified participants, 297 responded to the questionnaire which was about 91% participation rate but out of these only 291 questionnaires were useful which came to 89%. There seemed to be no statistically significant difference between the smoking habits among the different levels (p > 0.05). Overall, the current smoking prevalence was 5.5% which is lower than the national prevalence rate of 8.9%. Awareness of WHO FCTC global tobacco treaty was low (9.3%) among pharmacy students but they agreed that pharmacists and pharmacy students should be involved in quit smoking program (93.1%) and they were willing to be involved in helping smokers to quit (85.9%). Majority agreed that smoking should not be permitted in pharmacies (87.9%) and at pharmacy students' events (86.9%). Conclusion: From this study it can be concluded that smoking prevalence is low among pharmacy students at the University of Lagos. Awareness of global policy is low but they are willing to be involved in smoking cessation and promoting a tobacco free future. Page 1 of 8 (page number not for citation purposes) Tobacco Induced Diseases 2009, 5:13 http://www.tobaccoinduceddiseases.com/content/5/1/13 Background tional community tools to stand up to tobacco giants, Tobacco use is the single largest cause of preventable decrease global addiction rates, and reverse the tobacco death in the world today. The WHO report on the global epidemic. tobacco epidemic, 2008 [1] provides a comprehensive anal- ysis, based on data from 135 countries, of patterns of The global tobacco treaty bans tobacco advertising, pro- tobacco use, the deaths that result and the measures to motion and sponsorship, and insulates public health pol- reduce deaths. icy from interference by tobacco corporations. The treaty's advertising ban means an end to some of the tobacco Tobacco kills a third to a half of all those who use it. On industry's most effective and deadly tactics, like Philip average, every user of tobacco loses 15 years of life. Total Morris/Altria's Marlboro Man, in countries that ratify. tobacco-attributable deaths from ischaemic heart disease, While Philip Morris/Altria, British American Tobacco cerebrovascular disease (stroke), chronic obstructive pul- (BAT) and Japan Tobacco International (JTI) continue to monary disease and other diseases are projected to rise aggressively target developing countries to expand mar- from 5.4 million in 2004 to 8.3 million in 2030, almost kets for their products, the tobacco giants are renewing 10% of all deaths worldwide. More than 80% of these their efforts to derail the treaty process in countries deaths will occur in developing countries [1]. around the world. Tobacco use is highly prevalent in many countries. The global tobacco treaty is a major victory for the corpo- According to estimates for 2005, 22% of adults worldwide rate accountability movement. It sets important prece- currently smoke tobacco. Some 36% of men smoke com- dents for regulating other abusive industries that profit at pared to 8% of women [2]. the expense of people's health and the environment. WHO recommends five policies for controlling tobacco Tobacco use among health professionals is of particular use: smoke-free environments; support programmes for interest in the area of tobacco related surveillance since tobacco users who wish to stop; health warnings on they are not only responsible for primary health care and tobacco packs; bans on the advertising, promotion and education for tobacco related issues such as cessation and sponsorship of tobacco; and higher taxation of tobacco. exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke, but are also role About half of all countries in the world implement none models in the community. Furthermore, the preamble of of these five recommended policies, despite the fact that the WHO FCTC emphasizes the role of health profes- tobacco control measures are cost-effective and proven. sional bodies in efforts to include tobacco control in the Moreover, not more than 5% of the world's population is public health agenda and contribute actively to the reduc- fully covered by any one of these measures [2]. tion of tobacco consumption. These activities are also described in the Code of Practice for Health Professionals The World Health Organization has estimated that which has been officially adopted now by several Health tobacco and its products kill over 3.5 million people Professional Associations worldwide [6]. worldwide every year and it is extrapolated that by the decade 2020–2030, tobacco will kill 10 million people a Since 1987, the World Health Organization (WHO) has year [3]. sponsored World No Tobacco Day to encourage countries to implement comprehensive programs to reduce tobacco The World Health Organization Framework Convention use. Involvement of health professionals in tobacco con- on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is a global public trol is very importatnt such that the theme of World No health treaty aimed at reducing the burden of disease and Tobacco Day 2005 was 'Health professionals against death caused by tobacco consumption. The WHO Frame- tobacco'[7]. work Convention for Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), adopted by the 56th World Health Assembly in May 2003, Pharmacists are healthcare providers involved in treating is the first international public health treaty on tobacco and preventing illness and promoting health, and are control [4]. The Convention opened for signature on 16th therefore central to achieving the tobacco cessation goals. June 2003 in Geneva, Switzerland. The Convention quickly became one of the most widely embraced treaties The Global Network of Pharmacists Against Tobacco, in United Nations history; within two and a half years, it established by the International Pharmaceutical Federa- boasted more than 100 Contracting Parties. It officially tion (FIP) in collaboration with the WHO EuroPharm entered into force in February 2005 and by the end of Forum, is a global forum for pharmacists, pharmaceutical 2006, the total number of Parties had reached 149 cover- students and their professional organizations as well as ing more than three quarters of the world's population. At other individuals or organizations interested in smoking present the Signatories to the WHO FCTC is 168 and the cessation and tobacco control activities. The network was Parties to the WHO FCTC is 166 [5]. It gives the interna- officially launched during the World Conference on Page 2 of 8 (page number not for citation purposes) Tobacco Induced Diseases 2009, 5:13 http://www.tobaccoinduceddiseases.com/content/5/1/13 Tobacco or Health 2003 in Helsinki, Finland, in connec- healthcare professional student population would be tion with the Pharmacists Special Session [8]. important since their approach and credibility as future treatment providers may be influenced by their own Since the launch of the Global Network of Pharmacists smoking habits [12]. In a study carried out among health Against Tobacco in Helsinki in August 2003, FIP has been profession students 86.6%–99.8% believed health profes- involved in many new Tobacco Cessation initiatives. sionals should advise patients about smoking cessation however only 5.2%–36.6% among pharmacy students During the FIP Congress 2003 in Sydney, FIP adopted a had received formal training in tobacco cessation coun- Statement of Policy on the Role of the Pharmacist in Pro- seling. Among these students 71.7% – 99.0% believed moting a Tobacco Free Future.