Healthy Living Foster Care National Conference on Tobacco or Health San Francisco November 19-21, 2002 Help the Kids- Stop Smoking Anne Watson Bongiorno, RN, PhD(c)

Second Hand Smoke: Untold Harm Children miss twice as many school days Developing asthma at epidemic rates Have chronic ear infections Learning problems More frequent dental carries.

Quitting Smoking Smoking is a chronic disease, with most smokers making 7 attempts before quitting for good. Smokers who seek help to quit are twice as likely to be successful than those who try alone. Best practices include counseling and support, tailored to individual needs.

Needs Assessment 22.8% of all attendees at the 2001 VFAFV were interested in services. – 96.6% have thought about quitting – 88% interested in assistance to quit – 25.6% women interested – 6.6% men interested

Needs Assessment  50% of Foster Parents smoke.  Foster Children smoke at rates > state average. Children who live with an adult who smokes are more than twice as likely to smoke than those who live with nonsmokers.

Goals of the Program Plan Reduce smoking rates in foster families. Reduce indoor tobacco use in those not ready to quit. Use existing resources across the state, while offering the specialized support Foster parents need, due to the unique nature of their stressors.

Direct Services to Foster Parents Foster parents responded with interest in quitting. 38 provided with telephone support 18 currently actively continue their quit effort. Web education. Booths at conferences.

Harm Reduction for Foster Parents Provide ongoing contact with Foster parents who smoke. – Offer information about quitting. – Provide health education about the harmful effects of second hand smoke. – Share the benefits of “Take your smoking outside.” – Offer incentives to quit or reduce smoking.

Coordination of Efforts Collaborate with VT. Hospital Association and VT. Department of Health. – Identify Foster parents who are interested in quitting or reducing harm. – Provide telephone counseling to meet the specialized needs of foster parents, before and during a quit attempt. Recruit foster parents to quit. – Provide support services for 6-12 months after a quit date.

Activities Telephone follow- up to counsel parents and provide referrals to Quit programs. Ongoing telephone support for those actively quitting. Ongoing telephone counseling for those considering a quit attempt. Quarterly mailings and annual meetings

Community Based Outreach/Trainings Model best Practices – Ask, “ Do you smoke?” – Advise everyone to quit. – Assess willingness to quit. – Assist folks to move closer to a quit attempt, and reduce harm from second hand smoke. – Arrange follow- up.

Process Evaluation The concept of coordinating special populations with large programs is laudable. Funding for these programs is finite and means to be self sustaining are needed. This program was based on research, theory, and sound public health principles. This program is no longer available, funding has been cut and no new sources identified.