Information About Youth Vaping for Healthcare Providers

As a healthcare provider for a young person, you play an important role in your patient’s health. Below are a few things you can do as well as resources you can access to help address youth use of e-cigarettes and other vaping products.

Here’s what you can do

Table of Contents

Further your Education

  • New! Continuing Education UnitsThe Massachusetts Quitline provides free accredited continuing education modules to help a variety of providers care for their patients with tobacco dependence. Several courses cover the topic of vaping.  
  • New! The Vaping Information, Solutions, and Interventions Toolkit (VISIT) from Standford Medicine was created for adolescent and young adult health professionals. The Toolkit can accelerate the process of learning about this issue, screening and counseling your patients, and guiding them to the best treatment for nicotine and/or cannabis vaping dependence.
  • New! Youth Tobacco Cessation App. The American Academy of Pediatrics’ new clinical decision resource. This app is intended to assist physicians and other clinicians in supporting youth tobacco cessation by delivering the Ask-Counsel-Treat model in a tool designed for use within a clinical encounter. Designed for multi-system use, a progressive web app can be utilized on a computer, tablet or offline mobile app.
  • New! Youth Tobacco Cessation Case Studies. In partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Office on Smoking and Health, the American Academy of Pediatrics recently announced a new training resource to support clinicians in adopting the “Ask – Counsel – Treat” (A.C.T.) cessation counseling model. Case studies combine didactic teaching with practical conversation examples to demonstrate how to use the A.C.T. model in a variety of scenarios.
  • New! Know the Risks: A Youth Guide to E-cigarettes – A presentation from the CDC's Office on Smoking and Health to educate youth on e-cigarettes. This resource is intended for adults who educate or serve youth 
    ages 11–18 and includes a document with talking points.

Ask patients about their use of e-cigarettes

Youth do not necessarily equate smoking with the use of e-cigarettes/vaping, so note the language you use when asking your patients if they smoke or use other tobacco or nicotine products.  You may need to alter the words on your forms or in your conversations to incorporate e-cigarettes, vapes, vaping devices, e-hookah, nicotine pouches or other emerging products.  In addition, you may need to be specific about asking what substance is used with these devices - nicotine, THC, or a combination of both.  This may be a sensitive question because both nicotine and THC are illegal to purchase (for those under 21) in Massachusetts. This may also be a sensitive topic if your patient’s parent/guardian is in the room or if your patient does not understand that your conversation is confidential.

Report suspected cases of vaping-related lung illness to the Department of Public Health

While reporting of EVALI is no longer mandated, DPH encourages clinicians to continue to monitor EVALI cases and report suspected cases to DPH. DPH continues to engage in monitoring and surveillance of this condition.

The current EVALI report form can be found at: https://www.mass.gov/lists/infectious-disease-case-report-forms#e-cigarette/vaping-associated-lung-injury-(evali)-

Educate patients on the harms of nicotine and e-cigarette use

Share resources for quitting tobacco

To help youth

  • Resource Card to provide youth with information on quitting resources available from the Massachusetts Health Promotion Clearinghouse.
  • This is Quitting powered by truth® – A free and confidential texting program for young people who vape. Young people can text VapeFreeMass to 88709 to get started.  (See Resources for Quitting section for more information)
  • My Life, My Quit™ - Provided by the same vendor as 1-800-QUIT-NOW (Massachusetts’ Quitline), My Life, My Quit has youth coach specialists trained to help young people by phone or text. Young people can text Start My Quit to 36072 or call 855-891-9989 for free and confidential help or visit mylifemyquit.com to sign up online. (See Resources for Quitting section for more information). Providers can refer patients ages 13-17 to My Life, My Quit through QuitWorks.
  • Smokefree Teen – A website with tips, plans, apps, and other ways to get ready to quit and be smoke free for good from the National Cancer Institute, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  • NEW! NOT for Me - From the American Lung Association, a self-guided, mobile-friendly web-based program that gives teens the resources to quit vaping, smoking, or chewing tobacco products. This new digital modality is based off of ALA’s Not On Tobacco (N-O-T)® youth cessation in-person group program curriculum.
  • Educate young patients about withdrawal symptoms and ways to cope (see pages 18-19).

To help parents of young patients who may use tobacco

Provide resources to parents about talking to their teens

  • How to Talk with Your Child about Vaping – Massachusetts Health Promotion Clearinghouse (also available as website content on GetOutraged.org).
  • Want to Help Your Teen Quit Vaping/Using Tobacco? - This flyer is for parents/guardians of teens and provides information on signs of nicotine addiction, how to talk with their teens about the issue, free resources to help them quit, and ways to support them through their quit journey. This resource is available in English and Spanish to order and in Portuguese to download from the MA Health Promotion Clearinghouse.

Other resources

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