Evidence Based
For free, all participants will receive the same evidence based smoking cessation program.
Our Program
Fit & Quit is a research study through the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis. Fit & Quit is designed to help you quit smoking and stay healthy doing it. Ideally, there would be programs that do not require people to choose between quitting smoking and gaining 10 pounds (on average). This research study is testing three different weight management strategies in order to determine which is the best approach to help participants quit smoking AND manage their weight. With an evidence-based smoking cessation program that includes support, phone counseling and six months of Chantix, we provide the tools you need to succeed.
Tools to Succeed
All enrolled participants will receive phone counseling and six months of Chantix at no cost.
Trusted Support
Sponsored by the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Diabetes and Kidney Diseases.
Success Stories
Marlin, a smoker for more than 50 years, decided it was time to listen to his family and quit smoking. He had tried on his own to quit several times without success, but with Fit & Quit he was able to kick the habit for good.
Brigitte had been smoking for several years when she decided she was ready to quit. The Fit & Quit research study gave her the support and tools she needed to get healthy and quit smoking.
Our Team
Rebecca Krukowski, PhD
Principal Investigator
Dr. Krukowski is an Associate Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She obtained her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Vermont, was a medical psychology intern at Duke University Medical Center, and then completed her postdoctoral training at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
Her research focuses on behavioral weight management. In addition to being the Principal Investigator for the Fit & Quit study, she is the Principal Investigator for a NIH-funded trial testing the efficacy of a gestational weight gain intervention, a postpartum weight loss intervention, or a combination of the two interventions among active duty military women and dependents (“Moms Fit 2 Fight”). She is also an investigator for an online behavioral weight management program testing the addition of financial incentives (“iREACH3”). Finally, she is the site Principal Investigator for the NIH-funded weight loss project (“Fit Blue”) in the active duty military population at Lackland Air Force Base.
Dr. Jon O. Ebbert
Consultant
Dr. Jon O. Ebbert is a primary care practitioner, the Associate Director for Research of the Nicotine Dependence Center, and a Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. He is board-certified in both Internal Medicine and Addiction Medicine. He has over 120 publications in the area of tobacco control and tobacco dependence treatment and is an internationally-recognized expert in the field of tobacco dependence treatment.
Dr. Ebbert maintains an active primary care and addiction clinical practices and is currently engaged in NIH-funded trials assessing tobacco use patterns and the efficacy of interventions for tobacco use.
Zoran Bursac, PhD
Co-Investigator
Dr. Bursac’s ongoing projects include analyses of longitudinal surveillance data of tobacco and emerging tobacco product use, as well as tobacco cessation interventions in US Airmen, cluster randomized study of alcohol incident prevention in US Airmen, comparative effectiveness disparity trial for diabetes control among Pacific Islander population in NW Arkansas, and translation and analyses of clustered community-based public health interventions focused on weight maintenance.
Karen Derefinko, PhD
Co-Investigator
Dr. Derefinko is an Assistant Professor of Preventive Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Her primary research activities are aimed at understanding externalizing behaviors and conduct problems, including substance use, violence, and risky sexual practices in young adults and adolescents. She has designed, executed, and managed several research protocols that explore the contributions of mental health, personality, and other proximal mechanisms to externalizing outcomes in adults and children. Based upon findings from this work, Dr. Derefinko has developed two treatment manuals, and completed several treatment outcome studies, four of which have been published in peer reviewed journals. She received her pre-doctoral training through the University of Kentucky where she also served as a project manager for a longitudinal study conducted through the Center for Drug Abuse Research Translation (CDART), a center funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. She received additional training in treatment outcome research through her experience at the Center for Children and Families at Florida International University. She is now utilizing these experiences to begin developing tailored interventions for diverse populations based upon her work with the correlates of externalizing behavior.
Catherine Womack, M.D.
Co-Investigator
Dr. Catherine Womack is the Director of the Preventive Medicine Clinical Trials Unit. She works for University of Tennessee Methodist Physicans-UTMP and teaches UTHSC’s medical students, Medicine and Med-Peds Residents.
Julia Graber, MA, CCRP
Research Project Coordinator/Interventionist
Julia Graber is the Research Project Coordinator and one of the Interventionists for the Fit & Quit study. She received her M.A. in Applied Anthropology with a concentration in Medical Anthropology from the University of Memphis. Prior to joining the Fit & Quit team, Julia worked as a Study Coordinator for a contract research organization conducting consumer product research for a pharmaceutical company.
Natalie K Leuders, MPH
Interventionist
Natalie Lueders is an Interventionist for the Fit & Quit Study. Natalie received her Master of Public Health with a concentration in Health Behavior and Health Education from UAMS College of Public Health. She is published and has worked as in interventionist for over a decade. She is also a certified NFPT personal trainer and AFFA group fitness trainer.
Brandi M Johnson, MPH
Research Coordinator II/Interventionist
Brandi Johnson is a Research Coordinator II/Interventionist for the Fit & Quit Study. Brandi received a B.S.Ed in Health and Human Performance and a Master’s in Public Health from the University of Memphis. She has worked on various behavioral health and wellness research projects with Methodist Lebonheur Healthcare and the University of Memphis.
Contact Us
Are you ready to quit smoking?
Recruitment for this study is closed.
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Department of Preventative Medicine
66 N. Pauline St, Suite 501
Memphis, TN 38104