Background: Smoking is a public health problem. Supporting patients to achieve lifestyle changes, such as smoking cessation, is one way for the district nurse to promote health.

Aim: Investigate how the district nurse promotes health and supports patients in smoking cessation.

Method: A questionnaire was sent to 124 district nurses working with smoking cessation in a region in western Sweden. The questionnaire contained both closed and open questions. The responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and manifest content analysis.

Findings: The district nurses’ work includes motivating, educating, supporting, informing and following up patients in need of smoking cessation. Sixty-three percent of the district nurses consider themselves to have an important function in smoking cessation. Lack of time is a substantial problem and district nurses devote one to ten hours per week on smoking cessation. Forty-three percent felt that they did not have enough knowledge about smoking cessation. The district nurses wished to benefit from the experience of other colleagues.

Conclusion: District nurses experience lack of time and knowledge. In order to provide quality support for smoking cessation district nurses should possess medical knowledge and be empathic and involved.