Wakefield NHS stop smoking service supports launch of new quit kits
Wakefield NHS stop smoking service is supporting the launch of the new NHS Quit Kit to help some of the 8 million people in England who smoke.
The team is part of the local health improvement service, which is provided by the South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. The team offers free friendly support to help smokers who choose to quit.
As well as the services they offer the team are supporting the launch of a new Quit Kit as an additional way for people to give up the habit for good.
The NHS Quit Kit has been developed by experts together with smokers and ex-smokers and contains practical tools and advice to help smokers quit smoking for good.
Items include a health/wealth wheel which helps quitters calculate how much they are saving and the improvements they’ll see to their health; MP3 downloads which are scientifically proven to reduce cravings and a ‘tangle’ toy to help keep hands busy. The Quit Kit also contains information on other free quitting help such as local Stop Smoking Services, plus smokers can sign up to get new motivational text messages straight to their mobile phone.
The service will be encouraging quitters to also pick up a free kit from their local pharmacy as another way of supporting them on their road to quitting.
Research by NHS Smokefree suggests that many smokers are not stopping smoking because of misconceptions they have about quitting, with over a third saying that they feel too stressed to try to quit (33%). The same amount are not quitting because they don’t feel they have the willpower required (33%) or are not quitting because they tried before and failed (35%).
However in reality, research shows that smoking causes more stress and anxiety than not smoking and that quitting can help to reduce stress. Results also show that you can increase your chances of quitting successfully by using the help of a local NHS stop smoking service and willpower can be boosted with simple exercises available in the new and improved Quit Kit.
Specialist stop smoking advisor Samantha Hunter said, "People can increase their chances of quitting considerable by getting the right support. With the help of our service and the additional support of the new Quit Kit people can be well on their way to giving up smoking for good.
To find your nearest Quit Kit pharmacy stockist text SEARCH and your postcode to 88088 or search online at nhs.uk/smokefree
If you live in Wakefield, and would like to know more about this the local stop smoking service contact the team on 01977 465449