One year mark for Whanganui stop smoking service

Whanganui quit smoking service celebrates one year while betting national targets. Photo/ file

Whanganui Stop Smoking Service, Nga Taura Tuhono, is celebrating its first year with a bang - achieving the highest rate in the country for engagement with people who smoke.

Compared with all other New Zealand "quit" services, it has the top rate of interaction with people who smoke - many of whom have quit altogether.

Whanganui Stop Smoking Service clinical director Dr John McMenamin said while the Ministry of Health had set a target last year for New Zealand's quit services to engage with 5 per cent of smokers in their region, the Whanganui service exceeded the target by engaging with 9.2 per cent of the region's smokers.

"With the help of carbon monoxide meters, 43 per cent of those people were validated as having quit," Dr McMenamin said.

The five organisations who make up the Whanganui Stop Smoking Service are Whanganui Regional Health Network (WRHN), Te Oranganui, Health Solutions Trust, Taihape Health and Whanganui District Health Board.

Photo/File

Dr McMenamin said they attribute this success to a strong partnership between providers, integration with general practice, the hospital and other health providers, and a highly skilled and approachable quit team whose efforts resulted in a high number of word-of-mouth referrals.

"More than 1500 people have been referred to, or walked into one of the service's centres at the Quit Clinic in Wicksteed St, the Te Oranganui campus, Gonville Health, Marton Health Centre, and school and community sites in Taihape and Raetihi," Dr McMenamin said.

He said last year the number of people living in the Whanganui region who smoke dropped to 9000.

"So with more than 500 people committing to a definite quit date over the last year, this number is falling by the day."

Dr McMenamin said the Whanganui Stop Smoking Service plans to build on its success by offering an incentivised programme to help pregnant women to stop smoking.

Midwives, GPs and practice nurses are working together on this approach. The service is also raising awareness of its services through Facebook and other social media.