Durability of tobacco control efforts in the 22 Community Intervention Trial for Smoking Cessation (COMMIT) communities 2 years after the end of intervention

Funding organizations increasingly want to know that successful interventio ns are continued after the end of a research project. Assessments of durabi lity are rare and where done do not include the comparison communities. In this study we ascertain what tobacco control activities continued in interv ention communities involved in the Community Intervention Trial for Smoking Cessation (COMMIT), a randomized, controlled community trial aimed at adul t smokers, and also assessed level of tobacco control activities in the com parison communities. A mailed survey of key informants including paid staff and community volunteers in the 22 COMMIT communities was conducted. Appro ximately 79% of key informants responded to the survey. Although there was evidence that tobacco control activities were continuing in the interventio n communities, there was an equal amount of tobacco control effort in the c omparison communities. Within the specific tobacco control intervention are as, only the youth area showed more activity in intervention communities th an comparison communities. We conclude that despite a positive trial outcom e, differential durability was not achieved. More work needs to be done to assist communities in maintaining proven intervention activities. More stud y of methods to measure durability is also needed.