Establishing a Patient Advisory Board toward a Hybrid Experimental Design Combining Coaching and Digital Contingency Management to Promote Smoking Cessation

Establishing a Patient Advisory Board toward a Hybrid Experimental Design Combining Coaching and Digital Contingency Management to Promote Smoking Cessation

Despite significant health risks, smoking cessation success remains low, with only 7.5% of smokers successfully quitting annually. Digital contingency management (CM) interventions combined with clinician-delivered smoking cessation services represent a promising yet understudied approach. This pilot study seeks to develop and refine content for a multimodal adaptive intervention (MADI), informed by patients’ lived experiences, combining digital incentives and personalized human coaching.

Integrating patient-centered digital and human-delivered support promises a highly effective, scalable intervention approach, significantly increasing smoking cessation rates.

Fast Fact

Smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., yet fewer than 8% of smokers succeed in quitting annually. Digital contingency management interventions, offering monetary incentives combined with clinician-supported strategies, could substantially enhance cessation success. Patient advisory boards are central to developing relevant, effective content, ensuring interventions resonate deeply with smokers’ lived experiences and needs.

Contingency management (CM), which provides rewards contingent on achieving health behavior goals, is highly effective in promoting smoking cessation. Digital CM interventions address in-clinic barriers, allowing for scalable, real-time support. However, integrating digital CM with clinician-provided treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing has not been thoroughly investigated.

This pilot study aims to gather foundational data to support the development of a CM-based Multimodal Adaptive Intervention (MADI). The specific objectives include:

Aim 1: Establishing a virtual patient advisory board (PAB) comprising individuals interested in quitting smoking. This board will meet monthly to provide critical feedback on intervention elements, including digital features (e.g., app content, frequency of notifications) and clinician-delivered features (e.g., coaching session details).

Aim 2: Developing and refining intervention content guided by the PAB to ensure relevance and effectiveness. Participants will contribute strategies for enhancing engagement with intervention protocols, such as adherence to coaching sessions and breath-sample submissions.

Findings from this pilot will inform a larger hybrid experimental design (HED) trial to evaluate intervention feasibility and acceptability among smokers from diverse backgrounds interested in quitting.

Principal Investigator

Devin Tomlinson, PhD
T-32 Post-Doctoral Fellow
U-M Addiction Center
University of Michigan

Key Collaborators

Lara Coughlin, University of Michigan

Funding Source

d3center Pilot Grant Program

Focus Area

Integrating human-delivered and digital interventions