Blackpool hospital patients to get extra help to quit smoking

Smokers admitted to Blackpool Victoria Hospital are to be offered extra support during their stay to help them quit the habit.
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A new Inpatient Smoking Cessation Service is being launched at the hospital and will hand out advice to people in a bid to help them give up their tobacco addiction.

Figures show nearly a quarter of residents in Blackpool are smokers - much higher than the national average.

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A report to Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust board of directors says: "Blackpool and some areas of Fylde and Wyre have very high numbers of smoking related hospital admissions.

Blackpool has a higher than average number of smokersBlackpool has a higher than average number of smokers
Blackpool has a higher than average number of smokers

"Now the Trust’s new service – the Inpatient Smoking Cessation Service – will help patients who are visiting the organisation’s hospitals and who are smokers, to stop smoking.

"Patients who smoke and are due to come into hospital will be met during their visit by the trust’s inpatient specialist stop smoking practitioners who will give details of the support available."

People will also be referred to community services to continue their ‘quit journey’ once they have been discharged.

They can also receive a week's supply of prescribed nicotine replacement therapy and can be referred to either the Blackpool Tobacco Addiction Service (for Blackpool residents) or Quit Squad (for Fylde and Wyre residents) for support in the community.

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Patients who then set a quit date will receive up to 12 weeks support including one-to-one advice.

The most recent figures show more than 23 per cent of adults in Blackpool smoke, compared to just under 14 per cent in England as a whole.

Government figures show people living in deprived areas are four times more likely to smoke than those living in wealthier areas.

This is reflected in the outcomes for diseases such as lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) where smoking is the biggest risk factor.

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