BACKGROUND

Tobacco is a global public health issue. Brief interventions can motivate tobacco use cessation. However, Tobacco Use Cessation Counselling (TUCC) is underutilized in dental settings despite being ideal for such interventions. This survey aimed to assess the awareness, associated factors towards TUCC among dental care professionals in Sri Lanka, Brazil, and Queensland (QLD), Australia.

METHODS

This descriptive cross-sectional online survey used a self-administered questionnaire via Qualtrics, conducted from February to August 2023 among dental care professionals. Eligibility criteria included any practicing dental care professionals in the respective countries to account for potential non-response in online surveys. Awareness was assessed using three questions: "Have you ever heard of TUCC?"; "Have you ever heard of the 5A method of counselling?"; and "Have you ever heard of the 5R method of counselling?" Each answer was rated on a 3-point Likert scale: no (score 0), maybe (score 1), and yes (score 2). Participants were categorized into two groups, high and low awareness, based on their total awareness scores ranging from 0 (fully unaware) to 6 (fully aware), with the median score used as the threshold.

RESULTS

A total of 480 dental care professionals participated in this online survey across 3 countries. Only 15.6% were fully aware of TUCC, the 5As method, and the 5Rs method of counselling and 10.8% were fully unaware of TUCC. The awareness levels of dental care professionals were comparable and generally higher in Sri Lanka (56.3%) and Queensland, Australia (52.6%), than in Brazil (21.8%). Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that awareness levels differed significantly among the 3 countries (P < 0.01) and the awareness was significantly higher among the dental care professionals who recently joined the service having less than 10 years of service experience in the field of dentistry (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

The awareness of TUCC among dental care professionals was low in the survey sample. The results could contribute valuable insights for refining policies, educational strategies, and interventions aiming to improve TUCC awareness and training among dental care professionals and in turn, TUCC in dental settings could significantly contribute to tobacco control and reduce harm among populations.