Six month milestone for Tobacco Dependency Treatment as UHDB marks National No Smoking Day 2023
National No Smoking Day takes place today, on Wednesday 8 March 2023.
There is never a bad time to give up smoking, but on this day, colleagues at UHDB urge all in our communities who have a tobacco addiction to consider quitting smoking, and accessing the support you might need to help you give up.
The benefits of quitting can be seen as quickly as 20 minutes, as long as well over 10 years later - affecting your lungs, heart, taste and smell, sight and more - and this is a decision that could possibly save your life and of those around you. The sooner you quit, the sooner you'll notice changes to your body and health.
The journey may not be easy or straightforward, particularly for those for whom tobacco addiction has long been a part of their life, but across the NHS, there are a number of dedicated services to support you on your non-smoking journey.
Here at UHDB, National No Smoking Day coincides with six months since the launch of our Tobacco Dependency Treatment (TDT) programme in September 2022 - which aims to offer personalised support to all inpatients in our hospitals who smoke, as well as pregnant people and their partners who access our maternity services.
The aim of TDT is simple: to save lives, and to reduce smoking prevalence in our communities. Wherever we can, however we can, we want to support you in overcoming the addiction.
This support plan is offered to patients on an opt-in basis after an initial tobacco dependency screening, and is tailored specifically to their individual level of addiction, and level of support that they feel comfortable with - whether that's just a conversation with one of our trained tobacco dependency advisors, or a prescription of Nicotine Replacement Treatment (NRT) - ranging from patches, gum and medication. This support does not end when you leave our hospital site - we will continue to guide you over a 12-week period as your non-smoking journey continues after being discharged.
For example, Carol, one of our former patients, was admitted to our hospital for an urgent procedure after she developed rapid-forming cataracts. After this, she was informed about TDT by a UHDB colleague and hasn't looked back since. She said:
"During my screening, I was told that this issue was in part due to me smoking. I had no idea that smoking would cause something like this - and I made the decision there and then to give up.
"The Advisor who supported me with my quitting plan couldn't have been better. She really seemed to understand me, and what was making stopping smoking before this so difficult for me. She made me feel so valued and proud of what I was doing.
"I was prescribed with NRT, specifically some lozenges and some patches, which I found most effective. After 42 years of smoking, I was finally able to quit - within weeks. Of course it was really hard, but definitely much, much less than I had thought."
Since launching the programme across all five of our hospital sites, data shows that as of February 2023, we have supported hundreds of patients to quit smoking - with an average of around 60% of smokers admitted to our hospitals opting in to TDT support after their screening. We have also received more than 400 referrals to TDT each at our two largest hospital sites - Queen's Hospital Burton and Royal Derby Hospital.
In addition data also shows a large majority of patients who opt in to TDT successfully complete 28 days without smoking - which is confirmed by regular readings of carbon monoxide levels within the body. There is also increasing numbers of patients who have maintained their non-smoking journey addiction after several weeks and months.
The TDT programme has now been live at UHDB for six months, and to mark National No Smoking Day we are sharing some quotes from some of the patients that we've supported to quit smoking in that time.
David *
"I was admitted to hospital with a heart attack and spent days receiving various medication and treatments. Since I was unable to leave my bed, I was not able to smoke while I was being treated. Having been a smoker for decades, the idea of quitting seemed like a lost cause to me.
"Following the results of my screening, I was approached a tobacco dependency advisor who asked if I wanted to quit - and after 20 minutes chatting with him, I was clear of the impact of my addiction to my health, and now, a heart attack.
"I am still early on in my journey, but I am smoke-free, breathing better and feel like I'm clawing back lost time."
Sunil *
"I quit smoking 12 weeks ago and for me, the only negative of the experience is that I wish I had known of the support available to me even sooner, and that it didn't take me being admitted to hospital for me to find out.
"I never thought this was possible, and I certainly couldn't have done this without the support of the Advisors - from the NRT I've been offered, to the regular calls offering support.
"I really am truly grateful."
*Please note that the names and some of the details of the patients have been changed to protect their confidentiality.
If reading this, and reflecting on National No Smoking Day, you want help to quit now - you don't need to be admitted to our hospitals for support.
The NHS provides a range of tools that can guide you in your journey to kick the habit. You can access national resources to help you quit smoking, including the NHS Quit Smoking App (opens in new window) >
If you are pregnant, you can also view our tailored support to stop smoking during pregnancy >.