CPF FUNDED GRANT DETAILS

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are the most used tobacco product among adolescents in the United States. The 2021 National Youth Tobacco Survey found 2 million adolescents reported current use of e-cigarettes; of current high school e-cigarette users, 28% reported daily use. Although initially developed as an aid for adults to quit smoking, e-cigarettes are now being misused by youth for recreation and experimentation, which has resulted in lung damage, stunted brain development, and nicotine addiction. Community pharmacists have traditionally participated in smoking education and prevention for adults, which suggests they can also play a role in adolescent smoking cessation; however, there a gap in research on the role of pharmacists in curbing adolescent e-cigarette use. The overall goal of this project is to partner with community pharmacists in the design and pilot testing of an intervention in community pharmacies to educate youth and their families on the dangers of e-cigarette use. In Aim 1 of this study, we will use PearlRx and Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin to recruit and interview 20 Wisconsin community pharmacists to evaluate 1) their knowledge and perspectives on adolescent e-cigarette use, 2) their role in educating adolescents and families on the harms of adolescent e-cigarette use, and 3) utilize a participatory co-design approach to create an intervention in pharmacies for adolescent education on vaping based off pharmacists? feedback. In Aim 2, we will pilot test and evaluate the feasibility of the intervention in 3 Wisconsin community pharmacies with 10 child-parent dyads per test site (30 total dyads). We will evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention in these community pharmacies by measuring changes in e-cigarette knowledge and awareness, behaviors and intent to change behaviors surrounding e-cigarette use, and communication about e-cigarettes; thus, study findings will enable pharmacists to partner with families to address the growing issue of adolescent e-cigarette use.