Smoking remains a major public health concern in the UK, specifically among the low-income adults who have a higher smoking rate in compared to affluent groups. The population faces a major barrier to quitting the habits, including financial constraints, social influences and mental health issues.
Enhancing capability: Education & support
Health education campaigns
Skills training and Psychological support
Accessing nicotine replacement therapy and medications
Expanding opportunities: Accessibility and social support
Community-based cessation clinics
Smoke-free policies and workplace programs
Strengthening motivation: Behavioural & Incentive Programs
Personalised counselling and motivational interviewing
Financial incentives for quitting
Reflection on my work towards assignment
Throughout the assignment I have systematically explored the smoking cessation interventions for low-income adults in UK by integrating the theoretical models.
Research and evidence collection
I have started this by conducting extensive research on smoking perveance among low-income adults in the UK, while using recent statistics and reports. I have decided to use the sources like; Office for National Statistics (ONS), Public Health England (PHE), and academic studies.
Development of targeted interventions
By using the models, I have developed a structured intervention to enhance the smoking cessation efforts. It includes, education & awareness campaigns, affordable nicotine replacement therapy and financial incentives with peer-supported programs.
Application to nursing and public health
One of the major aspects of my work has been the understanding of role of nurses to improve the access to cessation support. I have explored the way nurses can use the motivational interviewing and personalised quitting plans.
Conclusion
This assignment needs multidisciplinary approach, while combining the behavioural psychology, public health policy and social determinants.
Assignment samples are offered to assist students in understanding coursework structure and key learning outcomes. Our UK assignment help emphasizes ethical learning support and original work. NURS1006 Health illness & beliefs frameworks explores nursing frameworks, and reflective practices. These materials are intended solely as study aids and reference guides
Smoking remains as a pressing health issue in the UK, specifically among the low-income adults, who experiences significantly higher smoking rates in compared to the wealthier groups (Nargis et al. 2019). Despite of the national efforts for reducing smoking prevalence, different social and political factors are available which influences the populations’ smoking habits and making a cessation effort highly challenging.
Social
One of the major social factors affecting the smoking in Low-income adults of UK is the socioeconomic inequalities. People from some deprived backgrounds are more likely to smoke higher than those in the professional occupations (Choi et al. 2020). The Office of National Statistics or ONS has reported in the year 2022, that 27% of the adults in the routine and manual jobs are smokers, in compared to 71% of the professionals (ONS, 2024).
Such major disparity is connected to the financial hardship and chorionic stresses, as certain individuals turn to smokers by considering it as a coping mechanism. As per the 2021’s study performed by Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) has found that more than 40% of the smokers’ lives in the deprived areas, where stress, dispersion and anxiety takes place (West, 2017). The association between then smoking and mental health issues are concerning elements with NHS Digital reported that more than 50% of the people who have severe mental health conditions are active smokers, in compared to the 14% of the general populations (Salt, V. and Osborne, 2020). As many believes that smoking assists in alleviating the stress, researches address that, nicotine dependency can worsen the anxiety and depressions over the time.
Political
The political factors play a crucial role in terms of smoking prevalence among the low-income groups. As the UK government has set a goal of achieving the “smoke-free” England by the end of 2030, and funding for the cessation of programs has become reduced (Hopkinson et al. 2021). In the year 2023, £70 million has been allocated for stop-making services, as a stark decline from £170 million in the year 2015, as addressed to UK Parliament reports (Edlich et al. 2025; Van Wijk, Landais and Harting, 2019). It can be seen that, the increased taxation on cigarettes had led towards having an average pack costing of £14.47 in the year 2023, and the measure hasn’t reduced rates of smoking in deprived areas due to the addition and availability to illicit tobacco (Marshall, 2024; Twyman et al. 2022).
The research done by the Imperial College of London 2023 has found that 15% of cigarettes consumption in the United Kingdom comes from the illegal market, where they have sold at lower process for bypassing the taxation (Wighton, 2018). As the policy ban measures, including 2007’s ban on smoking in the public areas and 2020’s ban on the menthol cigarettes has been introduced for curbing the rates of smoking, they have mixed the effects (Hiscock et al. 2020). University of Bath, 2021 have found that different low-income smokers, who have previously used the methanol cogitates have switched towards using the non-menthol alternatives besides quitting altogether.
One of the major and persistent belief is preventing the change among low-income smokers is the idea that smoking can assist in managing the stresses. Individuals believes that cigarettes provide a form of relaxation, despite of the rising evidences that nicotine addiction exacerbates the anxiety over time (Jiang et al. 2024). The 2022’s study done by British Heart Foundation have found that quitting the smoking can cause to 40% of improvement in the mental well-being, and many smokers remains unaware of the benefits (Taylor et al. 2021).
Apart from that, another widespread belief addresses that, it is too late to quiet, specifically among the older smokers. People assume that damage has already been done, while making the cessation effort to become futile. The 2023 report from NHS, addresses that quitting before the age of 40 years reduced the risk of smoking-related death rates by 90% (Pressroom, 2023). The misinformation regarding the alternative nicotine predicts discourages the quitting intension (Hayward, 2024). Despite of the Public health England is confirming the fact that vaping is 95% less harmful than smoking, several smokers believe that using e-cigarettes are also dangerous (Public Health England, 2019). Sensationalist media report have fuelled these perceptions, while leading some to continue smoking besides switching to safer alternatives.
The low-income adults in the United Kingdom faces different barriers while attempting to access the smoking cessation supports contribution of persistent health inequalities.
Financial constraints
Cost of cessation aids, including nicotine replacement therapies or NRT and prescription medications, can be noted as a prohibitive element for the individuals who have limited financial resources (Thomas et al. 2021). Although some major treatments are available through the NHS, additional expenses such as; transportation to the clinics or counselling sessions can deter the engagement. The immediate financial burden of purchasing the causation aids might outweigh the perceived long-term health benefits for those who are struggling for meeting the daily living expenses.
Psychological factors
Different low-income smokers use tobacco as a coping mechanism for stress, anxiety and depression. The belief that smoking alleviates the stress can undermine the motivation for quitting and reducing the perceived effectiveness of cessation support. At the same time, low self-efficacy and fear of failure can discourage people from seeking the assistance. The research addressed that low motivation of quitting the habit and insufficient awareness of health risks are major barriers among the low socioeconomic status (SES) smokers (van Meurs et al. 2022).
Social and environmental influences
The high smoking prevalence within the low-income communities normalises the behaviours, and makes cessation efforts has highly challenging element. Social networks reinforce the smoking habits and also lack of support from the family and friends can reduce quitting attempts. Greater exposure to the tobacco retail outlets located at the deprived areas increases accessibility and temptations (Clarke et al. 2021). The research indicates the fact that acceptability of smoking and density of tobacco outlets in low SES areas perpetuates the smoking behaviours.
Limited access to tailored services
Smoking cessation services might not be adequately tailored for addressing the unique needs of low-income people. Factors including inconvenient service hours, lack of childcare, and cultural insensitivity can reduce engagement. The qualitative study has found that deprived smokers often encounter the barriers which are related to the service accessibility and relevance, while suggesting the need of more personalised approaches (Smith et al. 2021).
Misinformation and Low Health Literacy
The misconceptions regarding the effectiveness and safety of cessation aids have been coupled with the limited understanding of available supporting options, and it can deter people from seeking assistance (Wright et al. 2021). The efforts for improving the health literacy while disseminating the accurate information are important to overcome the barriers.
Addressing the challenges needs a multifaceted approach, including increasing of affordability and accessibility of cession aids, while providing psychological supports and fostering supportive community environment.
Low-income adults in the United Kingdom faces a major barrier to access the smoking cessation support, including financial constraints and limited availability of tailored services and psychological challenges. Nurses are strategically positioned for addressing the obstacles and facilitate the effective quitting strategies within demographics.
Proactive identification and brief interventions
The nurses can initiate the conversions regarding smoking habits during the routine interactions, while providing brief advice and assessing the readiness to quit. British Thoracic Society has reported the fact that while nearly 80% of the patients has been asked about their smoking status, only 45% received brief advice and mere 15% were offers with referrals to cessation services (Brit, 2024). By constantly delivering the brief interventions and facilitating with the referrals, nurses can enhance the engagement with applying cessation programs.
Delivery of tailored behavioural support
The Nurse-Led cessation program have addressed the effectiveness, specifically while tailoring to some unique needs of the low-income individuals (Al-Fayyadh et al. 2022). The research published by BMC Nursing has emphasised a critical role for the nurses who assists the patients to quit smoking through using personalised interventions. By understanding socioeconomic challenges faced by the populations, nurses can design the interventions which addresses specific triggering situations and improve the quitting rates.
Facilitating the access to pharmacotherapy
Nurses can guide the patient to select and access the appropriate pharmacotherapies, including the nicotine replacement therapies or the NRT, or the medications such as; varenicline. The reintroduction of the varenicline through the NHS services aims for supporting more than 85,000 people annually in their cessation efforts (Pound et al. 2021; NHS, 2024). By informing the patients about the available options and assisting with prescriptions, nurses can strategically alleviate the financial and informational barriers for ensuring an effective treatment facility.
Providing continuous support and follow-up
The ongoing support is very necessary for ensuring smoking cessation. Nurses can schedule the regular follow-ups for monitoring the progression, address challenges and offer some better encouragements. Such continuous engagement has been connected to the higher success rates in terms of quitting smoking habits.
Advocating the accessible services
Nurses can advocate for the expansion and funding of local stop-smoking services. In the United Kingdom, government has made an investment of £70 million in 2025 for supporting the local authority-supported stop-smoking services (GOV, 2025). By making a participation in the policy discussions and addressing the needs of low-income populations, nurses can influence the development of more accessible and an effective cessation program.
Smoking remains a major public health challenge in the United Kingdom, specifically among the low-income adults who have exhibited the higher relevance rates in compared to the affluent groups. Such disparity contributes to the pronounced health inequalities, as smoking is a major cause of some preventable diseases and mortality (Buchanan et al. 2021). By addressing the issues, it necessitates a highly comprehensive understanding of different factors that influences the smoking behaviours and application of effective interventions. 2 of the theoretical frameworks, include Com-B model and Biopsychosocial model that can offer some highly valuable insights into the complexities of smoking behaviours and informing strategies to promote the cessation within such demographics.
Com-B model
The Com-B model posits the fact that behaviour (B) can be influenced by three different components, such as; Capability (C), Opportunity (O), and Motivation (M). For a behaviour to take place, individuals need to have an automatic motivation for engaging the behaviours. Regarding the context of smoking cessation, this specific model can assist in identifying the barriers and facilitate the smoking encounters.
Applying the COM-B Model to Low-Income Smokers
The research addresses different barriers and facilitation for accessing the NHS SSS or Stop smoking services, through using Com-B framework which has identified different factors to low-income populations. Reflective mitigation barriers encompass doubts regarding the effectiveness of SSS and personal ability of the individual to quit the habits.
| Biological factors | Psychological factors | Social factors |
|---|---|---|
| Nicotine dependence varies among the individuals, who have generic factors, while influencing the addiction’s severity and cessation success. The low-income smokers might have higher levels of dependence while necessitating the pharmacological assistance. | The mental health conditions, including; depression and anxiety are highly prevalent elements among the low-income group which can impede the cessation efforts. | The socioeconomic disadvantages, including the financial stress and exposure to the smoking in the community can strategically perpetuate the smoking behaviours. |
Table 1: Discussion of the elements of Biopsychosocial Model
(Source: As created by the author)
Integrating the Models for Effective Interventions
| Enhancing and skill building | Applying the educational programmes are necessary for increasing awareness of smoking risks and cessation benefits. Ensuring the availability and affordability of nicotine replacement therapies or NRT and medications such as’ varenicline can address the physical dependence. |
| Expanding opportunity | Development of a community-based cessation program are necessary which is easily accessible for low-income individuals, while considering different factors like; location, operating hours, and childcare provisions (ONS, 2024). |
| Strengthening motivation | Offering motivational interviewing and counselling are necessary for addressing the beliefs and attitudes of people towards smoking and quitting (ONS, 2024). |
Table 2: Integrating the Models for Effective Interventions
(Source: As created by the author)
References
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