Smoking Cessation Programme in Workplaces in Hong Kong (Phase IV)

This study will separate into two phases. Phase I is a large scale cross‐sectional survey to corporations in Hong Kong to examine the employers' knowledge, attitudes and practices in promoting smoking cessation in the workplace. Phase II is a 2‐arm randomized controlled trial will be conducted to examine the effectiveness of WhatsApp intervention. Outcome: The primary outcome of the study is to measure participated smokers' self reported 7‐day point prevalence quit rate at 6‐month follow‐up. Secondary outcomes include participated smokers' (i) self reported 7‐day point prevalence quit rate at 9‐ and 12‐month follow‐ups; (ii) self‐reported reduction rate at 6‐, 9‐ and 12‐month follow‐ups; (iii) self‐reported quit attempt at 6‐, 9‐ and 12‐month follow‐ups; (iv) change in self‐efficacy towards smoking cessation at 6‐, 9‐ and 12‐month follow‐ups compared with baseline. Data analyses Phase I: Descriptive statistics will be used to measure the (1) basic information of the corporations, including the total number of employees and smoking employees; (2) knowledge on smoking of employers/managerial staff; (3) attitudes on smoking cessation of employers/managerial staff; (4) practices of the corporations with respect to smoking cessation. Phase II: Descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, and mean will be used to summarize the outcomes and other variables. Chi‐square tests and t‐tests will be used to compare outcome variables between subgroups. The intention‐to‐treat analysis will be used such that those lost to contact and refused cases at the follow‐ups will be treated as no reduction in cigarette consumption nor quitting. Subgroup analyses will be conducted among the "adherence" cohort, which is classified as subjects who actively participant in the WhatsApp interaction.