Effect of cash incentives on preoperative nicotine replacement therapy use and smoking cessation before elective surgery.

INTERVENTION: A pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate the feasibility and quit‐outcomes of small financial incentives (supermarket vouchers) to promote smoking cessation in adult nicotine‐dependent smokers (greater or equal to 10/day) wait‐listed for future surgery at a Victorian public health service. All eligible smokers will be randomised on wait‐list placement to one of 4 groups 1:1:1:1 ratio; 3 are intervention arms, one is control group. Interventions arms are (1) Offer of up to 4‐weeks, best‐practice (fast‐acting plus slow‐release patch) nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) plus behavioural support (Quitline) (2) Offer as per one above, plus $30 voucher on day of surgery for proven abstinence, (3) No medication offer, but offer of $70 voucher on day of surgery for proven abstinence, (includes a printed resource outlining ways to access own NRT or other cessation support. This resource was developed specifically for the study) CONDITION: Mental Health ‐ Addiction Public Health ‐ Health service research smoking cessation;nicotine addiction;elective surgery; ; smoking cessation ; nicotine addiction ; elective surgery PRIMARY OUTCOME: Primary objective: Smoking cessation >24 hours with biochemical evidence of smoking cessation (exhaled carbon monoxide < 8 parts per million (ppm). [ On day of surgery, prior to operation] SECONDARY OUTCOME: Any quitting (succesful or relapsing) while on wait‐list; quit attempt defined as abstinence on lasting >24 hours, assessed by study specific questionnaire.[Duration of time on wait list] Biochemical evidence of smoking cessation (salivary cotinine level <10 ng/ml).[3‐months after surgery ] Quitline frequency of contact, determined by study specific questionnaire.[During time on wait list, up to 18‐month post enrollment] Quitline use; yes or no, via study‐specific questionnaire[During time on wait list, up to 18‐month post enrollment] Self‐report quit for greater or equal to 4‐weeks before surgery (corroborated with proven quit for at least 24‐hours), whenever 4‐weeks was available to quit between wait‐listing and surgical date.[Day of surgery] INCLUSION CRITERIA: Smokers of 10 or more cigarettes per day scheduled for an elective operation at the health service. Available for data collection on day of surgery.