Objective: This study examined the use of a Video Doctor plus provider cueing to promote provider advice and smoking cessation outcomes in pregnancy.
Design: A randomized clinical trial was conducted from 2006 to 2008.
Setting: Five community prenatal clinics in the San Francisco Bay Area of the United States.
Participants: A total of 410 pregnant patients completed screening for behavioral risks including tobacco use in the past 30 days. Pregnant smokers (n = 42) were randomized regardless of their intention to quit smoking.
Methods: Participants were assigned to either usual care or intervention. Intervention participants received 15-minute Video Doctor sessions plus provider cueing, at baseline and one month, prior to their routine prenatal visit. The Video Doctor delivered interactive tailored messages, an educational worksheet for participants, and a cueing sheet for providers.
Main outcome measures: Receipt of advice from the provider and 30-day smoking abstinence, both by self-report.
Results: Intervention participants were more likely to receive provider advice on tobacco use at both prenatal visits during the intervention period (60.9 vs. 15.8%, p = 0.003). The intervention yielded a significantly greater decrease in the number of days smoked and in cigarettes smoked per day. The 30-day abstinence rate at two months post baseline was 2.5 times greater in the intervention group; the difference was not significant (26.1 vs. 10.5%, p = 0.12).
Conclusions: The Video Doctor plus provider cueing is an efficacious adjunct to routine prenatal care by promoting provider advice and smoking reduction among pregnant smokers.