Smoking Cessation: Pharmacotherapy Options and Counseling Strategies

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the US, responsible for 480,000 deaths/year. Smoking cessation is the single most cost-effective intervention across virtually every chronic disease. NPs have both the opportunity and the clinical mandate to address tobacco at every encounter. Brief cessation counseling in primary care combined with pharmacotherapy triples quit rates compared to willpower alone.