Despite the decrease in tobacco use in the state of Georgia, the link between mortality and tobacco dependence remains too high to be ignored. It is well documented that nurses have been repeatedly associated with making a difference in the lives of tobacco-dependent individuals through effective tobacco cessation interventions. The experiences and outcomes of the GHSU NFPG Tobacco Cessation Clinic are encouraging for others to model. With cessation rates higher than national rates at the end of counseling session treatment, academic medical centers have an opportunity to evaluate the return on the investment for health among tobacco-dependent employees, students, and community members.
If progress is to be made toward ending the tobacco problem, nursing faculty practice plans must strategically prioritize and integrate tobacco cessation interventions with education, research, and advocacy. Only when tobacco cessation interventions are evidence based, interdisciplinary, and intense will a sustainable model of integrated practice be sustained. Nurse educators and researchers need to set outcome-driven research agendas targeting fundable venues that support proactive disease management treatment for tobacco-dependent individuals. Academic nurse leaders have a responsibility to drive practice outcomes to reduce tobacco-related morbidity and mortality rates and associated health care costs.