Public health programs seek to educate physicians by using a variety of venues. Therefore, it is important to understand which health information sources physicians are using and how these sources affect referrals. We explored how venues for health-related information affect physicians' referral practices to smoking cessation services. The 2008 DocStyles survey asked physicians to rank a list of their most trusted sources of health-related information. The analysis was restricted to 1,617 physicians who responded to all variables of interest. In this sample, the most trusted sources of health-related information cited by physicians were medical journals (95.9%), government health agencies (82.2%), other physicians (76.4%), professional medical societies (75.2%), and medical Web sites or podcasts (65.9%). Medical providers were more likely to refer tobacco users to cessation services if they used professional medical societies as a source to obtain patient health-related information, compared with medical providers not using this source (multivariate odds ratio？=？1.31; 95% confidence interval？=？1.03–1.66). Physicians use many health information sources. Therefore, to reach physicians effectively, a broad dissemination of guidelines and best practices in tobacco control is needed and should include information for medical societies. 1. Introduction Tobacco use remains the single most preventable cause of disease and death in the United States. In 2010, 19.3% of the adult population reported smoking every day or some days [1]. Physicians are one of the most important sources of information about smoking cessation for patients who use tobacco [2]. Approximately 84% of the US population visit a primary care provider each year, and they average 2.1 visits a year, which provide ample opportunity for physicians and their staff to deliver brief, effective, tobacco cessation interventions to their patients who use tobacco [3]. Physician advice increases the number of patients who attempt to quit smoking and succeed [4, 5]. During the office medical visit or at the patient’s bedside, physicians are frontline educators and treatment providers, and the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) guidelines confirm the physician’s role as essential for providing tobacco dependence services [3]. The PHS clinical practice guidelines for tobacco use and dependence recommend that physicians follow the 5？A’s when helping patients quit: ask, advise, assess, assist, and arrange followup [3]. Unfortunately, physicians do not routinely follow all of these guidelines. A report about
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