Adapting for Success: PA cAARds Pilot Project Results

Objective: Demonstrate the effectiveness of adapting best practices

Methods: PA cAARds! pilot’s was modified from the Ask, Advise, Refer (AAR) brief intervention model and the California program called “Do You cAARd?” in which diabetes educators encourage clients who smoke to call the state Quitline.  The three primary goals of the pilot were to incorporate diverse perspectives in planning the pilot, tailor materials to Pennsylvania, and to field-test PA cAARds!

Results: PA cAARds! Pilot Initiative participants contributed their expertise and ideas throughout the process, adding value to the resulting curriculum and potential of PA cAARds!. The majority of participants agreed that pilot materials were useful, clear, appealing, contained relevant information, contained enough practical examples, and had high overall quality.  Diabetes professionals’ ratings of their abilities to help clients both quit smoking and get services to quit smoking significantly increased while tobacco professionals reported similar increases in ratings of their abilities to help clients/patients manage their diabetes and get services.

Conclusion: Adapting best practices is an effective public health strategy