Provision of Recent Advice to Quit Smoking by Healthcare Providers in Canada: Findings from the 2022

Shannon Gravely, Pete Driezen, Janet Chung-Hall, Anne C.K. Quah, Christopher B. Lok, Thomas K. Agar, Geoffrey T. Fong.
Provision of Recent Advice to Quit Smoking by Healthcare Providers in Canada: Findings from the 2022 Canada International Tobacco Control Smoking and Vaping Survey
Preventive Medicine Reports, Volume 57, 2025, 103168, ISSN 2211-3355, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2025.103168.

Objectives: Among Canadian adults who currently or formerly smoked cigarettes, we examined: consultations with healthcare providers (HPs) in the last two years; among those, the proportion who received any smoking cessation advice and the type of support recommended; and whether receiving cessation advice varied by social determinants of health (SDH) and health conditions.

Methods: Data are from the 2022 Canada International Tobacco Control Survey (online; August–December 2022). Eligible respondents included 1163 adults who smoked daily for at least two years or quit smoking in the last two years, but previously smoked daily. SDH and health variables included: sociodemographics, financial insecurity, depression/anxiety, lung disease, and alcohol use.

Results: Almost half consulted an HP (48.7 %); among those, 51.0% received cessation advice: 46.8 % were advised to use nicotine replacement therapy, 32.0 % varenicline, 14.0 % bupropion, 13.3 % a quitline, 14.5 % a smoking cessation program, and 2.6 % an e-cigarette. Adults with heart disease were more likely to receive advice to quit [odds ratio (OR) 2.74, 95 % confidence interval (CI):1.26,5.98)]. Among adults who were smoking, those who had no interest in quitting (OR 0.25, 95 % CI: 0.09,0.68) or reported that they wanted to quit a little/somewhat (OR 0.42, 95 % CI: 0.22,0.80) were less likely to receive advice compared to those who wanted to quit smoking a lot. There were no significant differences by SDH, mental health, lung disease, or alcohol use.

Conclusion: The low rate of smoking cessation advice from HPs underscores the need for systematic engagement across clinical settings to encourage quitting smoking and offer evidence-based methods to support cessation.