Substance Abuse and Smoking Cessation

  • Describe use of appropriate tools for asking about substance and alcohol abuse
  • Initiate a discussion around substance abuse using motivational interviewing to assess readiness for change or stage of change
  • Describe organ damage due to smoking and also have an understanding of various cancers that smoking increases the risk for (eg oral cancers, laryngeal cancers, lung cancers, bladder cancer, cervical cancer)
  • Describe various conditions that patients may be at higher risk for after prolonged use of excessive alcohol (eg breast and colon cancer, heart disease, stroke)
  • List some community resources and other health care professionals who could be part of the care-team for the patient suffering from substance abuse.
  • List the evidence-based interventions for smokers including
    • A description of the various nicotine replacement forms, how they are used and how to advise patients on how much to use
    • Prescription medications, effectiveness and side effects

Core Resources

Substance Addictions Clinical Card

Taylor RC, Tink W. Keegan DA. Substance Addictions. Canadian Family Medicine Clinical Card. 2014. Available at: https://sites.google.com/site/sharcfm/

Alcoholism

Munroe S, Clarkson B. Alcoholism One-Page Primer. DFCM Open. 2011. Available at: http://dfcmopen.com. Attribution CC BY-NC-ND

Alcohol Use Disorder Tool

Centre for Effective Practice Alcohol Use Disorder Tool. Sep 2019.

A Comprehensive Review on the Impacts of Smoking on the Health of an Individual - PMC

Varghese J, Muntode Gharde P (October 05, 2023) A Comprehensive Review on the Impacts of Smoking on the Health of an Individual. Cureus 15(10): e46532. doi:10.7759/cureus.46532

Tobacco Algorithm updated May 2016

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Nicotine Dependence Service. Algorithm for Tailoring Pharmacotherapy in Primary Care Settings. Created March 2012. Updated. May 2016

CEP Guide for Primary Care Management of Mental Health and Addictions

Centre for Effective Practice in collaboration with Ontario College of Family Physicians and Nurse Practitioners’ Association of Ontario.  Keeping Your Patients Safe: A Guide to Primary Care Management of Mental Health and
Addictions-related Risks and Functional Impairments.  February 2017.

CGAH Drinking Less is Better

Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse and addiction available at:https://ccsa.ca/canadas-guidance-alcohol-and-health-public-summary-drinking-less-better-infographic

Supplemental Resources

Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health: Final Report

Paradis, C., Butt, P., Shield, K., Poole, N., Wells, S., Naimi, T., Sherk, A., &
the Low-Risk Alcohol Drinking Guidelines Scientific Expert Panels. (2023). Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health: Final Report. Ottawa, Ont.: Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction.

How does smoking cause cancer? | Cancer Research UK

Cancer Research UK. (n.d.). How does smoking cause cancer? Retrieved July 3, 2024, from https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/smoking-and-cancer/how-does-smoking-cause-cancer#tobaccorefs0

Canadian Smoking Cessation Clinical Practice Guideline

CAN-ADAPTT. (2011). Canadian Smoking Cessation Clinical Practice Guideline: Summary Statements. Toronto, Canada: Canadian Action Network for the Advancement, Dissemination and Adoption of Practice-informed Tobacco Treatment, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Resources for Smokers

CAN-ADAPTT. (2011). Canadian Smoking Cessation Clinical Practice Guideline: Summary Statements. Toronto, Canada: Canadian Action Network for the Advancement, Dissemination and Adoption of Practice-informed Tobacco Treatment, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.