While rates of smoking have declined overall in the United States, it remains highly prevalent among People Experiencing Homelessness (PEH). Coexisting factors like mental illness, addiction, and the life circumstances of PEH contribute to an attitude among health professionals that addressing tobacco use is not worthwhile with PEH. However, despite barriers to treatment, 40%-50% of PEH make a quit attempt in the past year. Low confidence in an ability to quit, along with low rates of success, strongly suggest brief interventions towards tobacco use are called for with this population. This presentation will describe how the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment method can be applied with PEH who smoke tobacco.
Presenter
Jim Winkle, MPH has trained hundreds of medical and behavioral health professionals how to address substance use with patients and clients. As the creator behind the SBIRT Oregon website, Jim has designed screening forms, clinic tools and training videos used by professionals across the country.
