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Summer 2006 |
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H e a l t h P r o
m o t i o n
Report confirms
effectiveness of Smokers’ Helpline
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Submitted Photo |
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CARE wins award The Physicians
CARE referral program was recently honored with a Pinnacle award for
community relations, presented by the provincial chapter of the
International Association of Business Communicators. Accepting the
award were NLMA communications director, Lynn Barter (right), and
Niki Legge of the Smokers’ Helpline, from Pinnacle sponsor, Dennis
Dillon, of Steele Communications. |
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The University of Waterloo
recently released a report detailing the effectiveness of several
Canadian smokers’ help lines. The report suggests that quit lines can
double or triple an individual’s success in quitting.
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By Mary Lynn Pender |
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The University of Waterloo recently
released a report detailing the effectiveness of several Canadian
smokers’ help lines, including the Newfoundland and Labrador
Smokers’ Helpline.
The report suggests that quit lines can
double or triple an individual’s success in quitting. At the six-month
follow-up, 90 per cent of callers to the Newfoundland and Labrador
Smokers’ Helpline had taken action in quitting — either quitting for at
least 24 hours, setting a quit date, or cutting down.
Most callers are taking full advantage of
services available from the quit lines and are very satisfied with the
service they receive. Callers who receive proactive calls are more
successful in quitting smoking than those who did not. At the six-month
follow-up with service users, the quit rates were:
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18.9 per cent smoke-free for preceding
seven days
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16.1 per cent smoke-free for preceding
30 days
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9.4 per cent smoke-free for preceding
six months
Generally, the quit rate for individuals
without additional support is less than five per cent.
A recent meta-analysis of quit-line
studies confirmed that proactive telephone counseling is very effective
in helping individuals quit smoking (Stead et al., 2004). As well,
studies clearly show that multiple counseling sessions are more
beneficial than a single counseling session.
Such evidence supports the NLMA’s
recommendation that physicians refer patients who use tobacco to the
Smokers’ Helpline. Research indicates that smokers are three times more
likely to try to quit if their doctor recommends it, and are three times
more likely to connect with supportive programs when recommended by a
doctor.
The Smokers’ Helpline is a free,
evidence-based service offering a variety of programs to help
individuals take action in quitting. It offers a counseling services
(telephone, group and internet-based), and self-help materials. When it
was launched in 1999, its protocols and methods for helping smokers were
developed in consultation with other successful quit lines
internationally and from the identified needs of people in this
province; the overall framework for helping smokers is based on
Prochaska’s Model of Change.
The Smokers’ Helpline Physician CARE Fax
Referral Program makes it easy to connect patients with tobacco
cessation services, and ensures that patients will receive a proactive
counseling call from the Helpline. The program is an evidence-based
service that was developed based on the Arizona Smokers’ Helpline
successful fax referral model. Since its launch in February 2004, the
provincial program has been an outstanding success, resulting in a 200
per cent increase in caller volume. Currently, 67 per cent of smokers
come from the CARE fax referral program. While a number of other health
providers refer patients to the service, physicians are responsible for
referring 2,199 of the 2,654 new clients from CARE.
Fax referral programs have a great impact
on the reach and utilization of quit lines. Currently, the Newfoundland
and Labrador Smokers’ Helpline is successful in reaching and providing
services to approximately 1.5 per cent of the tobacco-using population
in the province each year (the highest reach for any quit line in
Canada). Research indicates that with promotion and fax referral
programs, quit lines have the potential to reach up to 10 per cent of
the tobacco-using population.
To date, 273 different physicians are
participating in the Physicians CARE program to help smokers quit. To
get involved in this quick, effective and evidence-based service, simply
call the Smokers’ Helpline at (800) 363-5864 to receive a free referral
kit.
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