P. Satish, A. Khetan, D. Shah et al.
American Journal of Preventive Cardiology 13 (2023) 100394
Figure 1: Differences in baseline risk factors, presentation, management, and clinical outcomes of young vs. old ACS patients
141
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PREVENTIVE CARDIOLOGY 13 (2023) 100419
EFFECTIVENESS OF MEDICAL STUDENT COUNSELING FOR HOSPITALIZED
PATIENTS ADDICTED TO TOBACCO (MS-CHAT): A RANDOMIZED CON-
TROLLED TRIAL
Priyanka Satish 1 , Aditya Khetan 2 , Dharav Shah 3 , Prathisha Vinoth 4 ,
Amina Shahala AP 5 , Aiswarya Raj 5 , Shreya Cherian 5 , Faiez Farhan 5 ,
Priyanka Gangadharan 4 , GR Nivashini 4 , V Nanthini 4 , Rohan Thommen 6 ,
Thanveer Valiyathodi 6 , Rakendu Jayasree Rajendran 6 , Richard Josephson 7,8 .
1 Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center, Houston, TX, USA 2 Division
of Cardiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada 3 Ugravedan Foundation,
Mumbai, India 4 PSG Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Coimbatore, Tamil
Nadu, India 5 DM WIMS Medical College, Wayanad Dist., Kerala, India 6 Government
Calicut Medical College, Calicut, Kerala, India 7 Professor of Medicine, Case Western
Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA 8 Director of Cardiovascu-
lar and Pulmonary Rehabilitation, Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, University
Hospitals, Cleveland, OH, USA
Disclosures: A. Khetan is a co-founder of SEHAT (Society to Enhance Health and
Access to Treatments), Dalkhola, West Bengal, India. SEHAT provided funding for
this study. Other authors have no relevant financial disclosures.
Therapeutic Area: ASCVD/CVD Risk Factors; Preventive Cardiology Best Prac-
tices
20
Background: The need for, and effectiveness of physician counseling for tobacco
has been well emphasized. However, the medical curriculum in many countries
offers very little training needed to offer effective behavioral counseling. We hy-
pothesized that providing medical students with experiential training in tobacco
cessation counseling will improve their knowledge, while providing a valuable
resource to help patients quit.
Methods: pandemic, the primary outcome was changed from a biochemically ver-
ified quit rate to self-reported 7-day point prevalence of smoking cessation at 6
months. Changes in medical student knowledge were assessed using a pre- and
post-questionnaire delivered prior to and 12 months after training.
Results: Among 688 patients randomized across three medical schools, 343 were
assigned to the intervention group and 345 to the control group. After 6 months
of follow up, the primary outcome occurred in 188 patients (54.8%) in the in-
tervention group, and 145 patients (42.0%) in the control group (absolute differ-
ence 12.8%; relative risk, 1.67; 95% confidence interval, 1.24-2.26; p <0.001).
Among 70 medical students who participated in the study, knowledge increased
from a mean score of 14.8 (±0.8, maximum score of 25) at baseline to a score of
18.1 (±0.8) at 12 months, an absolute mean difference of 3.3 (95% CI, 2.3-4.3; p
<0.001).
Conclusion: This is an effective, low cost intervention that achieves the dual pur-
pose of providing experiential training in behavioral counseling to future physi-
cians, while simultaneously helping tobacco users quit. It is easily scalable and can
be tailored to meet the needs of medical education and tobacco cessation programs
in health systems across the world.