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Below is a summary of some of the direct services provided by TIPS in the first four years of the program:

  • Direct case management services were provided to prenatal patients at six separate provider practices. In total, over 3,000 pregnant women received individual support from a TIPS Case Manager in their efforts to quit smoking, stay smoke free, and eliminate second hand smoke exposure. Services included education, 5 A's based counseling, the provision of self-help materials (including the TIPS Step by Step Guide for Pregnant Smokers), and assistance with referrals for other life issues.

  • Group smoking education and cessation assistance was given to over 600 women participating in seven separate TIPS classes and prenatal classes throughout the region.

  • The TIPS Step by Step Guide for Pregnant Smokers has been provided to over 4000 pregnant smokers in the region and as part of prenatal classes. It is also disseminated by Health Department staff across our 6 county service area and in prenatal practices and hospitals throughout the region. 

  • We have "gotten the word out" about the dangers of pregnancy smoking and the services offered by TIPS. Our informational brochures and Step by Step Guide for Pregnant Smokers are available, and our educational posters (Cost of Smoking, Health Improves in Minutes,  Transform a Life, What is in a Cigarette, Washington County Smoking & Birth Outcomes, You have the Power, Secondhand Smoke, TIPS Informational Poster), are on the walls at all 6 County Health Departments, and at private provider offices, delivery hospitals, and social service agencies throughout the region.

  • We have manned booths and distributed information about the services offered by TIPS and the dangers of pregnancy smoking at 20 separate health education events (health fairs, expos, conferences) in the region. In all, 500 women and over 850 community health professionals have received or heard information about program services, program successes, and pregnancy smoking in general.

  • We have, with additional financial support from the March of Dimes, developed and distributed a Physician's Pregnancy Toolkit to over two dozen provider locations throughout the region. This manual providers evidence-based information and resources on a variety of pregnancy health topics, including tobacco use and cessation.

In addition, the TIPS Program has been heavily involved in educating health care professionals about issues related to pregnancy smoking and cessation. In the first four years of the program:

  • 62 physicians at multiple provider sites throughout the region participated in TIPS run training sessions where they learned effective techniques for counseling pregnant women to quit smoking.

  • 54 obstetric nurses and office staff at multiple sites participated in TIPS run training sessions where they learned effective techniques for counseling pregnant women to quit smoking.

  • 76 hospital bases labor and delivery nurses participated in TIPS run MSHA skills fair sessions, where they received education in providing brief smoking cessation counseling to pregnant and post-partum women.

  • 17 Sullivan County Health Department staff (including WIC and HUGS nurses) participated in TIPS run training sessions where they learned effective techniques for counseling pregnant women to quit smoking.

  • 550 student nurses (third year ETSU students beginning clinical rotations in obstetrics and pediatrics) participated in TIPS run training sessions where they learned effective techniques for counseling pregnant women to quit smoking. Participating in this training, and subsequent use of the intervention, was incorporated into required coursework for these students.

  • 48 area obstetric providers participated in mid-project TIPS informational sessions and/or surveys. This allowed us to share with them the status of the project, and allowed them to share with us the state of pregnancy smoking cessation services at their practices, what barriers they have encountered, and what else we could offer them.

  • 50 Medical Assistants from across the state participated in a TIPS run training session where they learned effective techniques for counseling pregnant women, and non-pregnant patients, to quit smoking.

  • 4 nursing staff at a local inpatient mental health facility participated in a TIPS run training session where they learned effective techniques for counseling pregnant women, and non-pregnant patients, to quit smoking.

Overviews of the TIPS Program, the dangers of pregnancy smoking, and effective cessation methods have been presented to the following groups or as part of the following programs:

March of Dimes - Program Services Committee of Tennessee, Appalachian Division
REACH (Regional Education and Action Coalition for Health)
Northeast Tennessee Regional Health Coalition
Carter County Health Council
ETSU OB/GYN Grand Rounds
ETSU Psychiatry Ground Rounds
Northeast Tennessee Regional Perinatal Center
Intermountain Psychological Association (IMPA)
Primary Care Research Day at ETSU
Appalachian Student Research Forum
Northeast Tennessee Prenatal Coalition
Rural Community Based Health Projects Course at ETSU
Holston Counseling Center
Abortion Alternatives of Elizabethton
Hope House of Kingsport

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