Introduction and Aim. Although tobacco and alcohol use have declined substantially in the Australian community, substance use among prisoners remains high. The aim was to compare the smoking, drug, and alcohol characteristics, sociodemographic profile, and general health of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal male prisoners in a smoking cessation intervention. Design and Methods. This study was a descriptive cross-sectional analysis of data from 425 male prisoners who joined a quit smoking trial conducted at 18 correctional centres in NSW and Queensland using data collected by standardised self-report instruments. Results. Average age was 33 years with 15% from Aboriginal descent. Compared to non-Aboriginal prisoners, Aboriginal prisoners were significantly more likely to have left school with no qualifications, to have been institutionalised as a child, to be previously incarcerated, and commenced smoking at a younger age. The tobacco use profile of both groups was similar; most of them had a medium to high level of nicotine dependence, smoked roll your own tobacco, and were “serious” about quitting. Discussion and Conclusion. Despite differences in terms of sociodemographic characteristics and offending history, the smoking characteristics of Aboriginal and non- Aboriginal prisoners were similar. Incarceration offers an opportunity to encourage smoking cessation and reduction of drug use. 1. Introduction Tobacco use causes a higher burden of disease than other behavioural risk factors, contributing 9.5% of the total burden in men and 6% in women and causes 16,000 deaths in Australia each year [1]. The 2010 National Drug Strategy Household Survey reported that the daily smoking prevalence in Australia has declined from 22% in 2001 to around 15% in 2010 [2]. However, specific groups such as Aboriginal people had higher rates than non-Aboriginal Australians (38% versus 17%) [2]. This higher rate of smoking contributes to the substantially increased burden of illness and disease experienced by Aboriginal people and contributes to reduced quality of life and premature death [3–5]. The prevalence of smoking among prisoners in 2009 was over five times higher (76% versus 15%) than the general community, and Aboriginal male prisoners were more likely to smoke (83% versus 71%) than non-Aboriginal male prisoners [6, 7]. Smoking tobacco is socially acceptable and regarded as an integral part of prison life where it is used as a de facto currency, to relieve boredom and stress, and as a social lubricant [8, 9]. Despite these high rates of smoking among prisoners, 70% of
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