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  5. Stopping smoking

Stopping smoking

Statistics

ISD Scotland releases data each year on the number, percentage, and outcome of quit attempts made with the help of NHS Scotland stop smoking services.

The Scottish Health Survey provides a variety of statistics relating to stopping smoking; including the percentage of smokers who want to quit, how many times a smoker has tried to stop, and whether they used nicotine replacement products, stop-smoking medications or e-cigarettes.

Smoking cessation guidelines

National smoking cessation guidelines for health professionals and smoking cessation co-ordinators are produced by NHS Health Scotland and ASH Scotland, and endorsed by the Royal College of General Practitioners. The guide, updated in 2017, comprises of several documents which are all available to download.

NHS Health Scotland became responsible for delivering stop-smoking support to Scottish prisons in 2011 and recently published a specification for a national prison smoking cessation service.

Review of smoking cessation services

The Scottish Government’s 2013 tobacco control strategy, Creating a Tobacco-Free Generation, included an action to review specialist smoking cessation services. An advisory group, chaired by Professor Linda Bauld, went on to publish a report making recommendations to improve the effectiveness of smoking cessation services, grouped under three themes:

  • improving processes within services and training for staff
  • increasing reach and success, particularly with priority groups (defined as young people, pregnant women, prisoners, people with mental health problems and those living in disadvantaged areas)
  • reducing variation in outcomes and improving consistency between services.

WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC)

Article 14 of the WHO's FCTC 'demands reduction measures concerning tobacco dependence and cessation' requiring that those who have ratified the treaty develop evidence-based guidelines to take effective measures to promote smoking cessation and treat tobacco dependence. Guidelines on implementing Article 14 were adopted at the FCTC Conference of Parties in 2010.

Useful links

Key topics Economics Inequalities Stopping smoking Second-hand smoke Young people Tobacco control legislation in Scotland Illicit tobacco Tobacco industry interference Tobacco use in pregnancy Global tobacco control Tobacco endgames