# Comparison of quit rates among exclusive cigarette smokers at Tobacco Control Center in Qatar: telephone versus face-to-face consultation

## TL;DR

This study found that telephone-based smoking cessation support was more effective than face-to-face sessions in helping smokers quit, especially during the pandemic.

## Contribution

The study compares quit rates between telephone and face-to-face smoking cessation methods in a real-world setting.

## Key findings

- Telephone care had a higher 12-week quit rate (31.9%) compared to face-to-face care (20.3%).
- Smokers with prior quit attempts were more likely to succeed in quitting.
- Higher cigarette consumption was linked to lower success rates in quitting.

## Abstract

During the coronavirus 2019 pandemic, smoking cessation services were delivered by telephone instead of routine face-to-face care. The objective of this study was to (1) determine if telephone care increases smoking quit rate compared to face-to-face intervention and (2) investigate factors associated with successful smoking cessation.

A retrospective study design was utilized. Random selection of patients from two groups (face-to-face care and telephone care) that completed 3 follow-up sessions in Tobacco Control Center in Hamad Medical Corporation in Qatar was conducted from April 2020 to September 2021. Quit rates were compared at 4-week, 8-week and 12-week follow-up visits and a multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to obtain factors related to successful quitting at 12-week follow-up.

A total of 138 patients were included in this study (69 patients for each group). At 12-week follow-up, 31.9% of patients of telephone care (n = 22) succeeded in quitting smoking, while only 20.3% (n = 14) remained abstinent in the face-to-face care group. Telephone care compared with standard care increased the odds of success in stopping smoking (AOR = 3.279; 95% Cl: 1.191–9.026). Also, smokers with a previous quit attempt were significantly related to stopping smoking successfully (AOR = 4.724; 95% Cl: 1.131–19.727). Higher consumption of self-reported cigarette smoking was statistically associated with lower success rates in smoking cessation (AOR = 0.919; 95% Cl: 0.874–0.966).

Our data suggests that providing telephone care seems more effective in smoking cessation treatment compared with routine face-to-face intervention. However, further formal assessment as randomized clinical trial needs to be conducted for more evaluation.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12875-025-02858-2.