Palmerston North Hospital takes the “no excuse” approach to increase quit attempts

04/06/2010 | ABC Smoking Cessation

Patients are encouraged to ask health care workers about the ABC Smoking Cessation and find out about the quit support that MidCentral District Health Board offers.

People have the right to be asked about their smoking status and the right to be provided with help to quit.

The ABC Smoking Cessation campaign was launched at Palmerston North Hospital in February.  The taskforce has developed strategies to help reach the Ministry of Health’s tobacco control health target of providing ‘better help for smokers to quit’.

The campaign is designed to prompt health professionals to routinely ask about smoking status and then provide brief advice and offer quit support to smokers.  There is strong evidence that brief advice is effective at prompting quit attempts and long term quit success. The quit rate is improved further by the use of effective interventions such as pharmaceuticals, telephone and face to face support.

The acronym ABC  stands for: ‘A’ a reminder to ask people if they smoke and document their smoking status; ‘B’ to give brief advice by simply advising people to stop smoking; and ‘C’ is for cessation support in the form of behavioural and pharmaceutical methods.

The campaign is now entering phase two, ‘100%, no excuses, ABC’, where health professionals will strive to ensure patients who are identified as smokers, are offered support to quit. This phase will will also start to include health services in the community whereas up till now the focus has been on hospitalised patients.

ABC Trainer, Fay Selby-Law, said support is available to those who want to quit smoking and quitting smoking is one of the single most important things smokers can do to improve their health.

The latest Tobacco Use Survey (2009) shows the current smoking rate for New Zealanders aged between 15 and 64 years is 21.8%, down 2.1% from the 2008 rate of 23.9%.

Acting Deputy Director-General Dr Ashley Bloomfield said this is excellent news as it confirms the downward trend in smoking shown across surveys. Our young people are leading the way, as they continue to reject smoking.

MidCentral Health’s campaign has been a great success. In quarter one 14% of patients were offered quit support. Since then there has been a large improvement with Quarter three showing now 48% of patients are being offered quit support. By July we aim to provide 80% of hospitalised smokers with advice and help to quit.

For more about this campaign visit www.smokingcessationabc.org.nz or http://www.midcentraldhb.govt.nz/HealthDisability/HospitalAndAssoc/PublicHealth/Smokefree/ABCSmokingCessationApproach/

Communications Unit: (06) 350 8945