PROTECTOR
Research type
Research Study
Full title
PeRiOperative Tobacco-cEssation in patients undergoing vascular or CardioThOracic surgery: PROTECTOR Study
IRAS ID
324896
Contact name
Ronelle Mouton
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
North Bristol NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, 1 days
Research summary
Smoking is a common cause of death and reducing tobacco use is an important priority for the NHS. Tobacco smoking around the time of surgery is particularly dangerous. Many patients having surgery of blood vessels, heart or lungs do not get enough support to stop smoking, but surgery may provide a ‘teachable moment’ and chance for health-care workers to help them stop or reduce tobacco smoking. However this is a difficult time for patients. We want to develop an intervention which health-care workers can use to help their patients having surgery of blood vessels, heart or lungs to smoke less. To do this we need to understand how smoking is currently discussed around the time of surgery, and find out about health-care workers’ and patients’ and carers’ experiences and opinions on stopping smoking at this time. This project will use focus groups with health-care workers (at least 2 focus groups with 6 clinicians in each) and interviews with patients and carers (at least 10). These will be done either online using video-conferencing, or by phone. We will also listen to audio-recordings of the consultations between health-care workers and patients around the time of surgery, to see how smoking is discussed. We have a group of patients who will advise us on making sure our study is appropriate for patients and carers.
REC name
London - Camden & Kings Cross Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/LO/0783
Date of REC Opinion
9 Oct 2023
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion