Post hospital interventions help smokers quit, study says

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Smokers who end up in the hospital can't smoke at all when they're admitted, so researchers decided to capitalize on that.

When longtime smoker John Lindi was hospitalized, he got an unexpected visit.

"The girl that came in and talked to me was really, really cool, you know supportive," Lindi said.

Supportive because her job was to help Lindi quit smoking for good.

"I had tried quitting several times. I'd make it as long as a week or two weeks and then finally just cave in," Lindi said.

Cessation experts offered Lindi medication like nicotine patches and counseling.

"We know that medication works and that counseling works, but they both together work much better than either one alone," said Dr. Nancy A. Rigotti of the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Experts checked in with Lindi regularly and encouraged his efforts to quit.

Rigotti and co-authors followed about 400 patients. About half of the patients received recommendations about how to quit, and the other half received the same recommendations, medication and access to additional counseling for three months after leaving the hospital.

In this report provided by the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found the added support led to huge success.

"We were able to increase the quit rates six months after discharge by over 70 percent by providing this simple system of care," Rigotti said.

Study authors say its important hospitals do their part to help smokers quit and stay smoke free.

Lindi hasn't had a cigarette for more than a year now.

"The benefit in the long run to just saying no to it is far greater than the benefit of having a cigarette," Lindi said.

Researchers say the in-hospital cessation program worked equally well across all ethnic groups and all types of smokers. Study authors say not only can it increase quit rates it can also help patient stay healthier long term.