Despite significant decreases in Americans' tobacco use, approximately 70% of homeless people use tobacco. This high rate of tobacco use among homeless people is attributed to the links between tobacco use and substance use, and tobacco use and mental illness.
In a bid to stymie this, the National Institutes of Health has awarded $300,000 to Dr. Theresa Montini, assistant medical processor in The City College of New York's Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education, for a four-year research study to test a nicotine cessation approach that she developed. It is based upon a successful substance abuse treatment, the "Matrix model."
With the assistance of eight City College students, half from the Sophie Davis School and half psychology undergraduates in CCNY's Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership, Montini will test this treatment in New York City homeless shelters.
She aims to develop the students' clinical skills so that they will be able to provide services in a way that promotes self-esteem, dignity and self-worth in their homeless clients. This community-based participatory research aligns with the City College's mission of service to the community, especially those who are economically disadvantaged, she said.
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About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided low-cost, high-quality education for New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. More than 16,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in: the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture; the School of Education; the Grove School of Engineering; the Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education, and the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership. U.S. News, Princeton Review and Forbes all rank City College among the best colleges and universities in the United States.