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GEMMA BACKS NEW TARGET TO HELP 400 SMOKERS A YR QUIT
Gemma Doyle is calling for more action and support from NHS Scotland to help smokers in West Dunbartonshire to quit for good following the launch of a new report on tobacco control in Parliament.
The new report by research agency IMS Consulting which was funded by Pfizer found that quit attempts and motivation to quit smoking are in decline. However, the Government has set a target for reducing the prevalence of smoking which requires 210,000 people to quit every year till 2015.
This means nearly 400 people quitting smoking successfully every year in each parliamentary constituency. The report was launched at an event in the House of Commons held by QUIT, the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation and Pfizer.
Gemma is calling on NHS Scotland to ensure that effective support services are in place for every smoker who wants to quit. She said:
“We need to do more to help people quit smoking to improve people’s health and save NHS Scotland money.
“I’m calling on the health services to ensure that everyone has the right support in place to help them quit first time round.”
Eileen Streets, Director of Tobacco Control at the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation said: “If we want to reduce the death toll from smoking we need to do two things: stop people from starting, and help them to stop.
“Different people need different kinds of support, so it’s essential that NHS boards put in place comprehensive smoking cessation services, offering the full range of tools and treatments to help people quit for good.”
Glyn McIntosh, Chief Executive of QUIT said:
“Quitting smoking is the single most important thing a smoker can do for their health. Using willpower alone only has a 3% success rate, smokers who use the right treatment to help them stop increase their chances of quitting by 4 times.
“QUIT urges every NHS Board to evaluate if they are investing enough money in smoking cessation services. Helping people quit smoking saves money by reducing the burden of smoking-related diseases on the health services and crucially, saves lives.”
DID YOU KNOW?
- Smoking is still the number one cause of premature death and preventable disease in England, accounting for 18% of all deaths amongst those aged 35 and over in 2010. Treating smoking-related illnesses costs the NHS in England £4.4 billion a year.
- QUIT® is an independent UK charity that helps smokers to stop and children to never start. The charity provides Quitlines in 8 languages, delivers a wide range of projects including supporting minority ethnic groups, pregnant smokers and smokers with mental health issues. QUIT has an innovative youth service and has reached over 1 million young people. QUIT also works with Corporates and the NHS. The charity is a partner of the National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training. QUIT provides training to health professionals, teachers and youth workers. More information about the charity can be found at www.quit.org.uk
- The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation is the only UK-wide charity dedicated solely to the defeat of lung cancer. The charity funds scientific research, tobacco control initiatives, including the provision of stop smoking services, and work in lung cancer patient information, support and advocacy. More information about the charity can be found at www.roycastle.org