Strengthening family relationship to increase family health, happiness and harmony: Findings from a Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) project under FAMILY: A Jockey Club Initiative for a Harmonious Society Project in Hong Kong

Oral Poster Presentation SessionSham Shui Po (SSP) district is one of the districts with high population density and lowest median household income. A CBPR project “Enhancing Family Well-being Project” was conducted by SSP District Social Welfare Office and School of Public Health, the University of Hong Kong from February 2012 to May 2013. (1) To promote family health, happiness and harmony (3Hs) by building capacity for families to enhance family relationship; (2) To investigate the effectiveness of CBPR programmes in improving family relationship and 3Hs. After training, based on positive psychology, social service workers in 30 participating organizations designed and organized their own programmes (one 2-hour session; one 1-hour booster) on one self-selected theme (“Gratitude”, “Hope/Resilience” and “Open-mindedness”) for people aged 6+ recruited by the organization. Participants were assessed four times (T1, pre-intervention; T2, immediately post-intervention; T3, 6 weeks and T4, 3 months after T2) primarily on family relationship and family 3Hs using Family Relationship Scale and family 3H indicators respectively. 1586 individuals aged 12+ from 1031 families participated in 29 programmes. Most (89.5%) were aged 18+, 69.0% were female, 65.9% had secondary or above education level and 69.5% were married. The mean score of overall family relationship increased from 75.6 (T1) to 76.0 (T4) (effect size, ES=0.06, p=0.03). The mean scores of family expressiveness increased (ES=0.10, p<0.001) and family conflict decreased from T1 to T4 (ES=-0.05, p=0.04). Family health, happiness and harmony scores all significantly increased from T1 to T4: ES = 0.14 (p<0.001), 0.10 (p<0.001) and 0.10 (p<0.001) respectively. All changes above indicated improvements after the programmes. This CBPR brief intervention was effective in enhancing family relationship and 3Hs. The effects were small but sustained up to 3 months. The main limitation was the lack of a control group, which was not feasible in a large CBPR project.postprin

Psychological, social and health issues in Hong Kong women with osteoporotic fractures

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New anti-smoking legislation on second-hand smoke exposure of children in homes

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Hardcore smoking after comprehensive smoke-free legislation and health warnings on cigarette packets in Hong Kong

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Psychometric properties of the Big Five Inventory in a Chinese sample of smokers receiving cessation treatment: A validation study

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A proactive family smoking cessation intervention for parents of children 0-18 months: a randmoised controlled trial

Parallel Session 1 – Population Health & Policy: abstract no. S1Symposium Theme: Translating Health Research into Policy and Practice for Health of the Populationpublished_or_final_versio

New anti-smoking legislation on youth smoking and quitting behaviours via a smoking cessation hotline

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Secondhand smoke exposure and maternal action to protect children from secondhand smoke: Pre- and post-smokefree legislation in Hong Kong

Background: Smokefree legislation may protect children from secondhand smoke (SHS) in the home from smoking parent(s). We examined the effect of the 2007 smokefree legislation on children's exposure to SHS in the home and maternal action to protect children from SHS exposure in Hong Kong. Methods: Families with a smoking father and a non-smoking mother were recruited from public clinics before (2005-2006, n = 333) and after the legislation (2007-2008, n = 742) which led to a major extension of smokefree places in Hong Kong. Main outcomes included children's SHS exposure in the home, nicotine level in mothers' and children's hair and home environment, mothers' action to protect children from SHS, and their support to the fathers to quit. Results: Fewer mothers post-legislation reported children's SHS exposure in the home (87.2% versus 29.3%, p<0.01), which was consistent with their hair nicotine levels (0.36ng/mg versus 0.04ng/mg, p<0.01). More mothers post-legislation in the last month took their children away from cigarette smoke (6.3% versus 92.2%; p<0.01) and advised fathers to quit over 3 times (8.3% versus 33.8%; p<0.01). No significant change was found in the content of smoking cessation advice and the proportion of mothers who took specific action to support the fathers to quit. Conclusions: SHS exposure in the home decreased and maternal action to protect children from SHS increased after the 2007 smokefree legislation. Maternal support to fathers to quit showed moderate improvement. Cessation services for smokers and specific interventions for smoking families should be expanded together with smokefree legislation. © 2014 Chan et al.published_or_final_versio

Service learning in medical and nursing training: A randomized controlled trial

The purpose of this study was to explore the long term effect of a service learning project on medical and nursing students' knowledge in aging and their attitudes toward older adults. A total of 124 students were recruited and then randomized to intervention group (IG) and control group (CG). A pre-and-post-intervention design measured students' knowledge in aging (using modified Palmore's Fact on Aging Quiz) and attitudes toward older adults (using Kogan's Old People Scale). A total of 103 students completed all the activities and questionnaires. After the intervention, there were significant differences between the IG and CG on Palmore's mental health (MH) (P =.04), Palmore's total score (P =.02) and Kogan's negative attitudes toward older adults (P =.001). All students increased their positive attitude toward older adults after the intervention. However, both the IG and CG showed a decrease in positive attitudes 1 month after the interventon, and such decrease varied, depending on the programme which students attended. The current study showed that the 10-week service learning activities significantly increased medical and nursing students' overall knowledge of aging and their understanding of mental health needs in old age, and reduced their negative attitudes toward older adults. However, the effect is not long-lasting. On the other hand, its effect on positive attitudes toward older adults cannot be concluded. Periodic contacts with older adults via service learning activities may be needed to sustain attitude change toward older adults. © 2011 The Author(s).published_or_final_versionSpringer Open Choice, 21 Feb 201

Effectiveness of smoking reduction intervention for hardcore smokers

© 2015 Lam et al.; licensee BioMed Central.Background: The prevalence and correlates of hardcore smokers, who have high daily cigarette consumption, no quitting history and no intention to quit, have been studied in several western developed countries, but no previous trials of smoking cessation have tested intervention effectiveness for these smokers. The current study examined if hardcore smokers can benefit from smoking reduction intervention to achieve cessation, and explored the underlying reasons. Methods: A posteriori analysis was conducted on data from a randomized controlled trial of smoking reduction intervention on 1,154 smokers who did not want to quit. Odds ratios of 7-day point prevalence of abstinence, smoking reduction by at least 50% and quit attempt at the 6-month follow-up comparing subgroups of smokers were analyzed. Results: In hardcore smokers, the odds ratio comparing the quit rate between the intervention and control group was 4.18 (95% CI: 0.51-34.65), which was greater than non-hardcore smokers (OR = 1.58, 95% CI: 0.98-2.54). The number needed to treat for hardcore and non-hardcore smokers was 8.33 (95% CI: 5.56-16.67) and 16.67 (95% CI: 8.33-233.64), respectively. In smokers who did not have quit attempt experience and those who smoked more than 15 cigarettes daily, the odds ratio comparing intervention and control group was 3.29 (95% CI: 0.72-14.98) and 1.36 (95% CI: 0.78-2.36), respectively. Conclusions: The a posteriori analysis provided pilot results that smoking reduction intervention may be effective to help hardcore smokers to quit and reduce smoking. Having no previous quit attempt was identified as more important than having large cigarette consumption in explaining the greater effectiveness of the intervention.published_or_final_versio