Press release
Wednesday March 11th 2009

On Wednesday 11th March, NHS South Gloucestershire and Avon Fire & Rescue Service (AF&RS) will be teaming up at Yate Shopping Centre to offer help and support to people who want to quit smoking and give advice on fire safety in the home.

Quit smoking advisers and fire officers will be on hand from 10am to 2pm, on the pedestrian walk near the leisure centre in Yate Shopping Centre.
Last year, well over a thousand smokers in South Gloucestershire quit with our help and you can too. Each year over a million people quit smoking on No Smoking Day and if you are thinking about quitting this could be an excellent opportunity to take the first step. You are four times more likely to quit with us.

With the NHS, smokers can benefit from free advice and help on preparing to quit, dealing with cravings and getting Nicotine Replacement Therapies or stop smoking medications on prescription. As a first step you could go smokefree at home.

People who smoke are at greater risk of dying from a fire in their home than those who don’t, according to national statistics. And in the AF&RS area, cigarettes and cigarette materials are the second biggest cause of house fires.

On 11 March, AF&RS staff will be on hand with advice on how to cut your risk of having a fire in your home. They will also stage a dramatic demonstration of what can happen when a chip pan fire breaks out.

Stop Smoking services are available all across South Gloucestershire. You can choose to go to your local GP, pharmacy or dentist where you see a ‘stop smoking service available here’ sign or contact the South Gloucestershire NHS Stop Smoking Service for local community based groups.

Elaine Fiander,  Stop Smoking Adviser at NHS South Gloucestershire said: “Research shows that smokers who quit with NHS support are up to four times more likely to succeed. You will feel real physical benefits almost immediately and, as most of us are feeling the financial squeeze, you’ll be quids in. For someone who smokes 20 cigarettes a day they’ll save more than £2, 100 a year if they quit.”

Stuart Matthews, AF&RS Community Safety Officer for South Gloucestershire said: “It is frightening the number of house fires our crews attend that have been caused by cigarettes not being put out correctly. The simple answer is to stop smoking, but I appreciate this isn’t easy. So, if you are going to smoke, please do it safely.”

If you want advice and information on your local support group contact the NHS Stop Smoking Service on 0117 330 2439 or email: NHSStopsmokingservice@sglos-pct.nhs.uk.

For more information please contact Sue Pratt, Communications Manager, South Gloucestershire PCT, on 0117 330 2499 (mobile: 07502 184 701).

Notes to Editors

Top 10 tips for a successful quit attempt

Research shows smokers are up to four times more likely to stop smoking successfully if they get support from their local NHS Stop Smoking Service and Nicotine Replacement Therapy, compared with relying on willpower alone.

The NHS Smokefree campaign suggests the following top ten tips to help smokers on their path to become smokefree:

• Order a free DVD from 0800 169 0 169 to find out about the full range of NHS support available to help you quit.
• Get support from trained NHS advisers who can help you to understand your addiction and how to beat it.
• Identify your smoking triggers and plan ahead. Try the Addiction Test at www.nhs.uk/smokefree.
• Use nicotine replacement products or other stop smoking medicines to cope with the withdrawal symptoms. These are available on prescription from the NHS.
• Sign up for free text and email alerts from the Together Programme with motivational tips and advice to keep you on track.
• Avoid situations where you might be tempted to smoke again. Plan ahead to cope with the hard times.
• Note how much cash you’re saving. Work out how long it will take you to save for your dream purchase by using the calculator on www.nhs.uk/smokefree.
• Use a carbon monoxide monitor to see for yourself how quickly your body recovers once you stop smoking. Local NHS Stop Smoking Services offer carbon monoxide monitoring as part of their stop smoking programmes.
• Chuck out your ashtrays, matches and lighters and anything else you needed to smoke. Put potpourri where your ashtrays used to be – your home will smell fresher in no time at all.
•  But most importantly, take it one day at a time and reward yourself every day.

Top tips for preventing cigarettes from causing fire in your home

• Don’t smoke in bed.
• Take extra care if you’re feeling tired, have been drinking or are taking prescription drugs. Many fires are started by people who have fallen asleep and not realised that a cigarette is still burning.
• Use a deep, heavy ashtray, made from a non-flammable material. And never tap your ash into a wastepaper basket.
• Don’t leave a cigarette, cigar or pipe lying around. They can easily overbalance as they burn down and start a fire by landing on carpet or a newspaper, and;
• Keep lighters and matches out of reach of children.

To top of page