New Zealand: Smokers Quitting in Big Numbers

Source from:  Independent Newspapers Ltd. / STUFF (nz)  02/26/2014

Smoking rates are down in the north, but there's still a long way to go, Karen Windelborn of Te Hauora o te Hiku o te Ika says.

The latest figures from the census show Northlanders following the national trend of turning away from smoking.

The proportion of adults in the region who said they were regular smokers dropped from 25.7 per cent in the 2006 Census to 19.1 per cent in 2013, a decrease of 5853 people.

Northland also had the highest proportion - 28.1 per cent of the population (29,400 people) - identifying themselves as ex-smokers.

That compared with 22.9 per cent nationally.

Among people in Northland aged 15 to 19 years, the proportion who regularly smoke dropped from 24.8 per cent in 2006 to 14.2 per cent in 2013.

That's a decrease of 49.1 per cent in that age group since 2006.

But it is still the young smokers that Te Hauora o te Hiku o te Ika targets.

"We're doing a lot of work with our pregnant mummies," Ms Windelborn says. "Our pregnant mummies are one of our hardest groups."

Midwives will let the group know that one of their mums is a smoker and Ms Windelborn and her team will show up, with the patient's permission, to deliver their message.

The patches, gum and lozenges that the group hands out as a nicotine replacement therapy in their 12-week programme are free. And it is available immediately.

"We can give the programme straight away, we have it right there on the premises," she says.

"We can put the patch on them right there when they're with us."

Triggers, habits and the length of the process are all discussed with smokers looking to quit.

"What we say is they've got to be ready," Ms Windelborn says.

"If you are ready in yourself, it will work for you. It really will.

"But if the doctor is telling you 'you should, you must', or your family is telling you 'you should, you must' it probably won't work," she says.

"For most people it's usually three or four times of trying before they quit and if after the second time they still haven't quit with the patches, that's when we'll refer them to the doctors.

"It could be anything that will trigger you to start smoking again, so what we say is if you haven't had a cigarette after six months, you're doing really well. But we say if you haven't had a cigarette after three months, you're doing well.

"It's actually telling yourself all the time that you do not need it, it's a whole change of lifestyle."

Her team is on the main street of Kaitaia every Wednesday and visibility is a part of Te Hauora o te Hiku o te Ika's plan.

"We just want to plant the seed, we say," she says.

There are two GPs, a dentist, a pharmacy and the quit smoking programme are all on site at their office in Kaitaia and when a smoker has failed to quit after two attempts on the patch, Te Hauora o te Hiku o te Ika will refer the smoker to a doctor to allow them to access drugs that can also work.

Graham Snowden is an ex-smoker, and an ex-drinker, who has had a heart transplant who works with Ms Windelborn.

His story of quitting smoking shows that there isn't an easy answer out there for those who are having trouble quitting.

"Actually, it was bloody hard, really hard," he says. "I had to go to a hypnotherapist.

"Everyone's different. I tried the patches and they didn't work for me." He tells smokers his story of quitting now to let them know he understands the difficult road they are heading down.

"I'd just had enough of smoking," he says. It took him five years of failed attempts before he managed to break the addiction 13 years ago.

He says there is a way for smokers to quit and that it's important those who want to leave cigarettes behind explore their options. Enditem