Most smokers who want to quit never use the free NHS stop-smoking services. This trial tests whether a personalised GP letter plus a “Come and Try It” taster session can change that. The problem is straightforward: smoking remains a leading cause of illness and death in the UK, and while most smokers say they want to quit, only a tiny fraction take up the NHS services designed to help them. The gap between intention and action is large, and current generic invitations are not working. The trial will recruit 60 GP practices across England and randomise consenting smokers aged 16 and over into two groups. One group receives a standard generic letter advertising the service. The other receives a tailored letter from their GP that draws on the patient’s own medical records—mentioning relevant health risks such as chronic conditions—plus an invitation to a taster session run by local advisors. Non-attendees get a second invitation three months later. Researchers will follow up by telephone after six months to check who attended, who quit, and what barriers remain. If the intervention works, it could offer a low-cost, scalable way to shift more smokers from intention to action, reducing smoking-related disease without requiring new infrastructure or expensive programmes.
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Recent figures show a reduction in smoking prevalence, but there is no room for complacency, smoking remains a major cause of ill health and mortality. Most smokers say they want to quit but only a tiny proportion make use of the free Smoking Cessation Services provided by the NHS. This research will evaluate, in a randomized trial, a two-pronged intervention to increase the number of people attending the services. We will recruit 60 general practices through the PCRN in areas that are representative of the English smoking cessation service. All smokers aged 16 and over identified from their medical records in participating practices will be sent a brief questionnaire to update their smoking status and to assess their dependence, motivation to quit, previous attendance at NHS services and to seek consent to participate in the trial. Current smokers who consent and are eligible will be randomized to: a) the Control Group to receive a generic letter advertising the NHS service and inviting them to contact the service for an appointment; b) the Intervention Group to receive i) a brief personalized tailored letter from the GP, offering risk information using information about general health status and chronic conditions from the patient's medical records, and data from the assessment; and ii) an invitation and appointment to attend a 'Come and Try it' taster session to find out more about the services, run by advisors from the local service. Attendees will be encouraged to sign up to a group or one-to-one session at convenient time. Participants who fail to attend will receive a further invitation and appointment 3 months later to encourage attendance. Research interviewers will conduct follow-up interviews 6-months after randomisation, by telephone, to assess attendance at the services, current smoking status, daily cigarette consumption, reasons for non-attendance and barriers to attendance in all participants.
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