Calling all workplaces – take the stop smoking challenge!

The Public Health Agency (PHA) is calling on businesses across Northern Ireland to take part in the ‘Workplace 28 day stop smoking challenge’ to help employees who smoke to give up their habit.

Smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable illness, premature death and health inequality throughout Northern Ireland. Each year around 2,300 people die prematurely from smoking-related illnesses such as coronary heart disease, stroke and many cancers.

Gerry Bleakney, Strategic Lead for Tobacco Control with the PHA, said: “Thirty percent of routine and manual workers here smoke, and for many, smoke breaks are part of their daily routine at work. This makes the workplace the ideal setting for breaking their smoking habit.

“Helping employees to stop smoking not only benefits the individuals themselves, but also has a positive impact on the organisation as a whole as it helps to deliver better health in the workforce, increased productivity, improved staff morale and reduced absence due to sickness.

“We want to encourage and support more routine and manual workers to stop smoking and are calling for businesses to work with us to make this happen.”

The challenge encourages smokers to give up smoking for 28 days, because research shows that if a person stops smoking for 28 days or more, they are five times more likely to stop for good.

There is also a financial benefit for workers who stop smoking – with the cost of tobacco now at an all-time high, quitting a 20-a-day habit will deliver an average £3,090 a year saving, which is a nice addition to the pay packet and could pay for a great holiday or clear the bills.

Gerry continued: “Registering your interest in participating as a business is easy – just visit www.want2stop.info, click on the ‘Workplace Challenge’ icon and follow the business registration link. The website is packed with information and resources regarding the challenge and contact details for our specialist stop smoking workplace advisers.

“Alternatively, if you do not wish to register as a business, you can still promote the challenge among your workforce and encourage individual smokers to register.

“Last year thousands of people decided to stop smoking using PHA funded ‘Stop Smoking Services’ and many others quit on their own. If you quit and then relapse, accept it, work out why it happened, and focus on how you can avoid it in future. It takes several efforts for many people to quit for good but if you are determined you will do it.”

In Northern Ireland there are more than 650 free stop smoking specialist services across, for more information on them and for useful tips to stop smoking visit the PHA’s ‘Want 2 Stop’ website at www.want2stop.info where you can also order a ‘Quit Kit’ free of charge or follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/want2stopni

The workplace 28 day stop smoking challenge is a PHA initiative in partnership with the five Health and Social Care Trusts, Belfast City Council, Northern Group Systems, Cancer Focus and Closing the Gap.