Tobacco Intervention Program Trains Youth to Help Young People Stop Smoking

Guam - In an effort to reduce tobacco use disparities among Chamorro and other Micronesian youth, twenty-eight youth successfully completed the Brief Tobacco Intervention (BTI) Skills Certification Training held on April 30 and May 14.
The training was funded through a community partnership initiative between the UOG Cancer Research Center U54 Pilot Program 1 (Community Outreach), Youth for Youth LIVE! GUAM Organization, the University of Guam Chuukese Student Organization, the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Prevention and Training Branch, the Department of Public Health and Social Services Tobacco Control program, and Health Partners, LLC. The co-Principal Investigators for U54 Pilot Program 1 are Drs. Neal Palafox (University of Hawai'i Cancer Center) and Annette M. David (UOG).

The Basic Tobacco Intervention (BTI) Skills Training Certification Program provides the skills necessary for those trained to conduct brief tobacco interventions with individuals dependent on tobacco and assist them to quit their tobacco use. The trainees have learned the skills to assess an individual’s readiness to quit using tobacco, and provide appropriate materials and referrals to aid that individual. The BTI Program was adapted from the Arizona Department of Health Services, Tobacco Education and Prevention Program, and has been extensively tested and implemented across the state of Arizona and adapted for use on Guam.

This training was conducted as part of the National Cancer Institute funded, U54 minority institute partnership cancer research grant between the University Of Guam Cancer Research Center and the University of Hawaii Cancer Center, entitled, "Community Outreach to Reduce Tobacco Use Disparities Among Pacific Islander Youth on Guam."

According to the 2008 Guam Substance Abuse Epidemiological Profile, tobacco consumption among youth and adults remains high on Guam. Statistics show that 1of 3 adults and 3 of 4 youth currently smoke on Guam. Youth have reported smoking as early as middle school. Adult smoking rates on Guam (27%) are significantly higher than in the United States (18%). Chewing tobacco with betel nut continues to be a growing concern. Recent data supports the need for youth tobacco cessation services on Guam. The BTI training addresses this need by building capacity of trained youth providers on Guam. Trained youth are able to provide peer-to-peer brief tobacco cessation intervention at their schools and within their social settings.