Table 1.

5A’s: Definitions and Examples

	Definition	Examples
Ask	Physician asks the patient about current tobacco use status	Do you currently use tobacco? Do you smoke? How would you describe your current smoking?
Advise	Physician provides the patient with clear, strong, and personalized advice to quit smoking	Clear You need to stop smoking. It is important you quit smoking. Strong It is really important that you try to quit smoking. I think quitting smoking is critical for your health. Personalized … you need to quit for the health of your unborn child. … with small kids in the house, smoking is dangerous.
Assess	Physician verbally assesses patient’s readiness to quit	Are you willing to give quitting a try? On a scale of 0 to 10 where 0 is not motivated at all and 10 is extremely motivated, how motivated are you to quit?
Assist	Physician provides brief counseling or self-help materials to help patient in their quit attempt.	I am going to give the number to the quitline so you can use it. They have helped a lot of folks out and I think it would really be useful for you. What are some things you can do on your quit day to help you be successful?
Arrange	Physician arranges a follow-up visits or phone calls to review progress toward quitting.	You come back in a month, but I would like to see you sooner to see how your quitting is going. Why don’t we schedule a follow-up visit to see how the quitting goes for you?