Smoking behavior and beliefs about the impact of smoking on anti-tuberculosis treatment among health care workers.

SETTING: Tuberculosis (TB) health care facilities throughout Georgia.

OBJECTIVE: To describe smoking behaviors among health care workers (HCWs) at TB facilities and determine HCWs' knowledge and beliefs regarding the impact of tobacco use on anti-tuberculosis treatment.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey from May to December 2014 in Georgia. Adult HCWs (age 18 years) at TB facilities were eligible. We administered a 60-question anonymous survey about tobacco use and knowledge of the effect of smoking on anti-tuberculosis treatment.

RESULTS: Of the 431 HCWs at TB facilities who participated, 377 (87.5%) were female; the median age was 50 years (range 20-77). Overall, 59 (13.7%) HCWs were current smokers and 35 (8.1%) were past smokers. Prevalence of current smoking was more common among physicians than among nurses (18.6% vs. 7.9%, P < 0.0001). Among HCWs, 115 (26.7%) believed smoking does not impact anti-tuberculosis treatment, and only 25.3% of physicians/nurses received formal training in smoking cessation approaches. Physicians who smoked were significantly more likely to believe that smoking does not impact anti-tuberculosis treatment than non-smoking physicians (aOR 5.11, 95%CI 1.46-17.90).

CONCLUSION: Additional education about the effect of smoking on TB treatment outcomes is needed for staff of TB health care facilities in Georgia. Nurses and physicians need more training about smoking cessation approaches for patients with TB.