Special Webinar on NRT and Quitlines – Slides and Materials are Now Available Online

NAQC hosted a special webinar on April 26 to discuss the implications of the recent article by Janet Ferguson et al. published in the British Medical Journal. The article, titled "Effect of offering different levels of support and free nicotine replacement therapy via an English national telephone quitline: randomised controlled trial,” described a 2x2 randomized study conducted in the UK comparing standard quitline care to proactive counseling, and provision of NRT to no NRT. The authors conclude that "offering free nicotine replacement therapy or additional (proactive) counseling to standard helpline support had no additional effect on smoking cessation.”

Webinar presentations included a summary of the study design and findings, as well as formal responses from Dr. Shu-Hong Zhu (University of California San Diego) and Dr. Bruce Baskerville (University of Waterloo). Strengths and weaknesses of the study, as well as implications for quitlines in a North American context were discussed. Overview slides andmaterials are now available here. A summary of the webinar, including NAQC’s formal response to the article, will be sent to members by email, and will be posted online soon!