Most male smokers with coronary heart disease resume smoking after hospital discharge. The main reason for failure to quit smoking is lack of motivation. However, few studies have used individual health education models to explore the effectiveness of smoking cessation according to the stage of change in smoking cessation behavior of patients. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of health education and counseling on the stages of change, smoking decisional balance, and self-efficacy of smoking cessation in smokers with no intention of quitting.

Patients diagnosed with coronary heart disease by a medical center and smoked habitually were recruited as participants through convenience sampling. The research period was divided into a control stage (first to fourth week: standard of care) and the experimental stage (fifth to eighth week: health education and counseling). In the control stage, participants only received standard nursing care. In the experimental stage, intervention measures (health education and counseling) were implemented. The baseline data were the pretest data collected in the control stage. Four weeks later, a posttest was performed, namely the pretest of the experimental stage. Subsequently, 4 weeks of health education and counseling were introduced to smokers according to different stages. After 4 weeks of intervention, participants were asked to fill out the posttest questionnaire again to measure the stages of change for smoking cessation, smoking decisional balance, and self-efficacy of smoking cessation.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients diagnosed with coronary heart disease by a medical center and smoked habitually

Exclusion Criteria:

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