This week we publish the feedback from our recent interactive exercise looking at how best we manage patients who smoke.
In a break from our usual policy, I have decided to show a greater number of responses from your discussions as, being such a discursive topic, I felt it might be of interest to show the range of responses we received.
Firstly, you will see that almost all respondents now believe that it is very much the business of the eye care practitioner to ask about smoking habits and be in a position to offer advice as appropriate. This is a major change from just a few years ago when a majority felt that such a lifestyle choice was none of our business.
Secondly, it is refreshing to see that most of us have taken on board the message about how to give information regarding lifestyle. Simply telling someone to stop smoking rarely works, and often has a negative effect. On the other hand, letting people know of the ocular consequences of their habit and letting them know of any resources available to help were they then to consider giving up is the best approach.
There is currently quite a fuss out there around the adverts that look like cigarette packets and clearly state that obesity is a major risk factor for diseases such as cancer. The fact that there has been such a fuss raised by these (‘fat shaming’ has been stated in some of the newspapers) suggests that these adverts are effective in kickstarting a conversation. The evidence for a link between obesity and eye health is strong and so look out for another interactive exercise soon on this more controversial topic.
Finally, I thought I might try and adopt PM Johnson’s approach to health funding by offering a discount to the few readers who enjoy my column. Alas, no luck yet!
