Japanese nurses' perceptions toward tobacco use intervention for hospitalized cancer patients who entered end of life

Background: Smoking patients who are admitted to a smoke-free hospital often experience nicotine withdrawal. Control of withdrawal symptoms in hospitalized patients with terminal illness by nurses may be important to end-of-life care. Objective: The aims of this study were to assess Japanese nurses' perceptions toward providing a tobacco use intervention to hospitalized cancer patients who are receiving palliative and end-of-life care and to investigate demographic factors associated with a positive perception. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 1955 nurses at 6 selected hospitals in Japan. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed using age, workplace, length of nursing education, primary position, academic certification, having received instruction on smoking cessation programs at their nursing school, having attended lectures on smoking cessation programs at his/her hospital, and smoking status as potential independent variables. Results: The proportion of nurses who had a positive perception toward providing a tobacco use intervention to hospitalized cancer patients receiving end-of-life care was only 16% to 20% at each hospital. Experience of having received instruction on tobacco use interventions while in nursing school was significantly associated with having a positive perception toward providing a tobacco use intervention for such patients. Conclusions: Most of the Japanese nurses had a conservative perception toward providing a tobacco use intervention for cancer patients who are receiving end-of-life care. Having received instruction on interventions while in a nursing school was likely to yield a positive perception. Implications for Practice: It is important to introduce instruction on tobacco use interventions for patients with terminal-stage cancer in the standard curriculum of nursing schools in Japan.