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Brief Tobacco Intervention Training in Childcare Center [NCI]

Myra Muramoto, MD, MPH

The major purpose of this project is to train childcare center workers to conduct brief tobacco interventions to prepare them to more effectively influence parental tobacco use behavior and determine the potential utility and impact of the BI training. Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) exposure in children is a major public health problem, with as many as 43% of U.S. children, or more than 15 million children, who live in a household with a smoker. In more than 70% of homes with both adult smokers and children, smoking is allowed within the home. Childcare centers are an underutilized venue for child health promotion and have a potentially significant influence on parental smoking behavior. Given that nearly 60% of preschoolers currently receive non-parental care on a daily basis, the potential to reach a large number of children and parents is substantial.  Training childcare center workers (CCCWs) to conduct brief tobacco interventions (BI), which have been demonstrated as an effective tool for smoking cessation, will prepare them to more effectively influence parental tobacco use behavior.  A pilot study to determine the potential utility and impact of BI training in childcare centers is proposed, with a target population of 1) children and their parents/care givers and 2) CCCW staff.  Phase 1 will be a baseline survey of parents of children in childcare centers to determine prevalence and estimated level of ETS exposure of children and other relevant factors; Phase 2 will be a prospective longitudinal, randomized, controlled, pilot study to examine the impact of BI training on: 1) children’s ETS exposure as measured by salivary cotinine levels; 2) parental knowledge, attitudes and behaviors regarding ETS exposure and tobacco use; and 3) proportion of CCCW’s who report intervening with parents to reduce children’s ETS exposure.  During Phase 3, results will be analyzed and disseminated through publication.