Smoking Cessation
One of the hardest things a lifelong smoker can do is to quit smoking. As soon as they make the decision to do so, they will immediately feel better for it. They will also start experiencing the benefits like better health, lifestyle and saving money.
According to Quit Victoria, smoking rates among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people still remain over three times the national average of non-indigenous people. The good news is that smoking rates are declining faster in Aboriginal Communities that general Australian population.
VACCHO supports Member services develop and implement policies and programs to reduce the burden of smoking-related disease in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community in Victoria.
We do this by:
- Supporting our Members to maintain a smoke-free workplace policy
- Coordinate and work in partnership with external organisations to develop training to build workforce capacity in smoking cessation and brief intervention
- Improve smoking cessation programs within our Member organisations by coordinating and facilitating workshops where Members provide and share information on their program’s success stories.
- Advocate for new and continued funding for smoking cessation programs on behalf of our Members so that they can continue their work to lower smoking rates in their Communities.
- Developed culturally appropriate smoking cessation information materials.
- Participate in quarterly working groups with Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs), Government and other relevant external stakeholders to develop and discuss strategies on smoking cessation for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community in Victoria.
- Supporting local smoking cessation events and activities
- Utilise social marketing and social media to promote smoking cessation messages
- Supporting monitoring and evaluation of tobacco cessation initiatives.
Get in touch with the Tobacco Cessation team to discuss how we can help your organisation.
RESOURCES
Resources developed by Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) across Victoria to assist Community members access help to quit smoking.
Boorais and Smoke Don’t Mix – A campaign run by the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service and is dedicated to the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Take the pledge – An online Community pledge developed by the GOMOB! TIS Consortium. The pledge is to protect kids, families and our Mob from passive smoking – making the home, car, workplace and/or kids play areas #smokefreemob zones.
Additional resources
SMOKING CESSATION
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Online Training for Health Workers
Quit has a range of online training for health professionals working in different settings such as general practice, primary care nursing and maternity health. The online training equips health workers with the skills, confidence and knowledge to provide smoking and vaping cessation care.
For Maternity Staff
iSISTAQUIT (implement Supporting Indigenous Smokers To Assist Quitting) is designed to increase health service capacity by providing best practice training in smoking cessation to healthcare workers who have contact with pregnant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
The iSISTAQUIT training and implementation package has been updated and is ready to launch! The package has been co-developed with input from specialist Aboriginal advisors. They are now offering two options for clinical staff participation
Smoking Cessation Assets
VACCHO have developed a suite of free digital assets for our ACCOs to use and customise to help promote their “quit smoking” initiatives.
The suite includes poster and social media templates and establishes a clearly recognisable brand for smoking cessation for effective and consistent communication.