Evaluating tobacco dependency treatment services for people with severe mental illness

What is the issue?

People with severe mental illness (SMI) have a life expectancy around 15–20 years shorter than that of the general population. One contributing factor is smoking - people with SMI are more likely to smoke, which increases their risk of developing smoking-related health conditions.

In addition, people with SMI often face greater barriers to quitting than the general population. As a result, the standard support offered by tobacco dependency treatment services may not be well suited to their needs.

In April 2022, NHS England commissioned seven early implementer sites to deliver community-based tobacco dependency treatment services specifically designed to support people with SMI.

How did we help?

RAND Europe researchers, along with our University of Birmingham partners in the NIHR-funded BRACE Rapid Evaluation Centre, were commissioned to evaluate these new tailored services and capture insights about their commissioning and delivery.

Specifically, we aimed to understand:

1. How the tobacco dependency treatment services are organised and delivered to support the needs of people with SMI.
2. How people are referred into the service, and how referral pathways have changed over time.
3. How success of the tobacco dependency treatment services is defined and measured locally, and what measurement challenges are encountered.
4. If locally available, what costs are associated with the delivery of the tobacco dependency treatment services, and how the services are currently funded.

The BRACE team reported on the findings of the Tobacco dependency treatment services for people with severe mental illness evaluation at a webinar at the Smoking Cessation and Health Conference, December 2025.

Explore the NIHR Funding Award Information and Protocol

BRACE Collaborators

• Sophie Spitters