Smoking Cessation Program

Smoking Cessation Program

Tobacco is the number one cause of preventable death in the world today. Tobacco-related illnesses already kill 5.4 million people every year. If current trends continue, smoking will kill more than 8 million people every year by 2030, over 80% of whom will live in low- and middle-income countries. Tobacco consumption causes respiratory illnesses, lung diseases, several types of cancers, and cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including heart disease and stroke.

In developed countries, smoking is responsible for 90% of all cases of lung cancer in men and up to 86% of all cases in women. Lung cancer is the leading cause of death from cancer among men. In the USA, lung cancer is the leading cause of death overall among women.

In the EU, about 26% of all deaths from any form of cancer are caused by smoking. 16% of all deaths from Cerebrovascular Disease (CVD) in men, and 5% in women, are caused by smoking. More than 64% of all deaths from COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) in the EU in 2005 were attributable to tobacco use. Mortality from COPD is 14-times higher in cigarette-smokers than in non-smokers.

Benefits of quitting smoking?
The health benefits of quitting smoking are substantial. The greatest health benefits are for smokers without smoking-related diseases who stop smoking before they reach 35 years of age – they can reclaim a normal life expectancy. Smokers who stop later in life, however – even during their 70s – can expect to significantly reduce their risk of premature death.

Why is professional help needed?

Nicotine dependence is classified as a relapsing chronic disease, often requiring ongoing medical treatment, as do all other diseases, medical disorders, and drug dependencies. Many smokers will only be able to stop smoking and maintain long-term abstinence after receiving clinical treatment and management training for their nicotine dependence.

The effectiveness of individual counseling and pharmacotherapy in smoking cessation interventions is well established. An individual’s chances of success in quitting smoking can be almost doubled by the combination of face-to-face counseling and the use of smoking-cessation medications.

ACPN’s Smoking Cessation Program

Program Principals

• Provide information and increase awareness about the risks of smoking.
• Encourage smokers to think about the relevance of quitting to their lives, identify the risks associated with smoking, and realize the rewards of quitting.
• Help individuals in need of medical and psychological assistance to quit smoking and reduce the risk of relapse.

Program Objectives

1. Participants will be able to: 
2. Identify their reasons for smoking and for quitting
3. Identify their smoking patterns and smoking triggers
4. Recognize approaches to quitting smoking
5. Describe the physical effects of tobacco use
6. Recognize the symptoms of physical withdrawal
7. List strategies for quitting
8. Utilize tips to help replace tobacco with healthy alternatives