Tuesday 31 May is World No Tobacco Day – a day of global action to tackle addiction to smoking and its devastating impact on health.
We will now be asking every in-patient if they smoke and offering free Nicotine replacement products (NRT) to manage cravings.
The new Tobacco Dependency Treatment Service will be launched on World No Tobacco Day. It is made up of a team of specialist advisors who will support ward staff to coordinate the support for smokers while in hospital and upon discharge.
We want every patient to have the very best outcome at this hospital and the chances of a healthy recovery greatly improve when a patient stops smoking. Smoking can harm your chances of a quick and successful recovery.
Julie Bardsley, tobacco dependency specialist lead
Julie continued: “Many people are in hospital because of smoking-related illness. And if they continue to smoke it’s likely they’ll take longer to recover. Evidence shows it can also weaken the immune system, leaving people more vulnerable to infectious diseases.
“As part of our smoke-free commitment, patients and staff will be given the tools and support they need to quit.”
A key area of focus for the team is supporting pregnant women who smoke. The team is engaging with them in the community and offering support specific to their needs.
Tobacco Dependency Treatment Services are a commitment in the NHS Long Term Plan to ensure that inpatients in hospital or who are engaged with maternity services are screened for smoking and offered treatment to stop as part of routine care while in hospital.
Smoking facts
- Smoking is still the biggest preventable cause of death and illness in England, with around 506,000 hospital admissions a year. Smokers on average lose 10 years of life compared to non-smokers from tobacco caused diseases.
- Smoking causes 16 types of cancer including lung cancer, COPD, diabetes, heart attack and stroke, diabetes and dementia.
- Smoking weakens the immune system and makes smokers more vulnerable to infectious diseases like influenza and Covid.
- At least one in every two long term smokers will die from a tobacco-related disease
What to expect when you come into hospital
- We’ll start with a chat and ask you if you smoke as part of our routine health check when you arrive.
- If you do smoke, you’ll be offered nicotine replacement products to help manage any cravings or withdrawal symptoms. All hospitals in the North East and North Cumbria are now completely smoke-free which means no smoking is allowed anywhere on our hospital sites.
- A member of our tobacco dependency treatment team will visit you and discuss the options and support available to you.
- We will work with you to agree a treatment plan for your stay in hospital. If you want to stop long-term, we can arrange for ongoing support and medication for when you go home.
Support with smoking
For more information about quitting smoking, visit our stop smoking service page.
Further information is available on NHS Better Health.
