Help Offered to Quit Smoking

MIDCENTRAL DISTRICT HEALTH BOARD - MEDIA RELEASE
Help Offered to Quit Smoking

9 December 2013

That time of year is coming around again – the time where we set our New Year’s resolution. For smokers, that resolution may be to quit smoking.

January 1, 2014 will also see another tobacco price increase of at least 10%, creating a further incentive to quit. To coincide with these dates, MidCentral Public Health Services, working in collaboration with Te Ohu Auahi Mutunga (TOAM), is once again running the “Summer Packs” promotion which is designed to increase quit attempts among smokers.

The summer packs promotion has been running for the past three years, with each year seeing an increase in the number of packs disseminated.

MidCentral Public Health Service Health Promotion Advisor Julie Beckett said the summer packs are designed to encourage people to quit by providing them with a free sample of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), along with information on where to access support.

“People often attempt to quit using New Year’s resolutions, and research has shown a spike in quit attempts following a tobacco price increase.”

The packs provide smokers with a free trial of NRT, and include: NRT patches, and either lozenges or gum for people who smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day, while those smoking fewer than 10 cigarettes a day will be offered packs with varying strengths of lozenge or gum.

“It’s been shown that smokers are 50 percent more likely to succeed in a quit attempt when using NRT,” Julie said.

The packs also include information on local quit smoking services including TOAM which has specialist smoking cessation coaches available throughout the MidCentral region, Aukati kaipaipa, and national services such as Quitline.

To get hold of a free Summer Pack, visit one of the participating pharmacies below. The promotion runs from 10 December to 10 February.

Participating pharmacies are:

Palmerston North – City Health Pharmacy; Radius Pharmacy The Palms; Hospital Health Pharmacy; Vogel Street Pharmacy; and Cook Street Pharmacy

Feilding – Tattons Unichem Pharmacy; Smiths Amcal Pharmacy; and McCraes Pharmacy

Levin – Unichem Levin Pharmacy

Foxton – Amcal Gimbletts Pharmacy

Otaki – Hamish Barham Pharmacy

Dannevirke – Wards Pharmacy Limited

Pahiatua – Bollards Pharmacy

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