The Five A's Model

 

The 5 A's model was developed by the National Cancer Institute to help people quit smoking, and has been refined to be applied to any behaviour change. The 5 A's stand for:

• Ask (to get pts to listen to you, listen to them)
  • do you view inactivity as a problem?
  • does being inactive concern you in any way?
  • are you interested in becoming more active?
  • are you ready to do something to accomplish right now?
• Assess
  • readiness to change
  • importance in relation to other values
  • why do you want to become more active?
  • how hard are you willing to work to fit increased activity into your life?
  • are you ready to work now to gain benefits later?
• Advise
  • make clear, specific, personalized recommendations
  • encourage SMART goals
  • remind patient to accept small gains
  • advise the patient to identify barriers/temptations/confidence
• Assist
  • use behaviour-change techniques, either self-help or counseling, to help the patient reach goals
  • encourage and support success through skills, confidence, and social/environmental supports
  • problem solve to address barriers and temptations
  • make yourself available contingent upon change - "if you meet goals, I'll see you more often"
  • suuplement with other treatments, ie medications, if necessary

 

• Arrange
  • schedule followups
  • refer to community supports
  • encourage patients to seek out active others

Resources and References

Five Steps to Intervention (the 5 A's). US Public Health Service, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.