DHH Clinics Go Tobacco Free

Starting New Year's Day state-operated community behavioral health clinics in Region 8 will become cigarettes store free.

Patrons and employees will not be allowed to light-up or use any cigarettes online products on the grounds of these northeast Louisiana state-operated clinics: Monroe Behavioral Health Clinic, Tallulah Behavioral Health Clinic, Ruston Behavioral Health Clinic, Columbia Behavioral Health Clinic and the Bastrop Behavioral Health Clinic.

The new policy is part of DHH Secretary Bruce D. Greenstein's initiative to help make Louisiana healthier, this includes making all DHH campuses online cigarettes free.

"Each year tobacco claims 6,400 lives in Louisiana and costs the state $1.5 billion in health care," Greenstein said. "We all own our own health. Every day we have to make decisions to make ourselves, our families, our communities and our state healthier. I commend our behavioral health staff in these communities for leading this effort, which will only spread throughout DHH campuses in the coming year."

Earlier this year, the regional behavioral health clinics began preparing for the move to tobacco-free campuses. Preparation activities included educating clients, staff, contractors and Regional Advisory Council members on the new policy, providing tobacco cessation resources and posting signage and displaying educational materials in each clinic lobby.

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American Smokeout

Every third Thursday in November, cigarettes for sale users are encouraged to make a plan and set a date to quit for life, or pledge to be smoke-free for 24 hours as a part of the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout. This year’s Great American Smokeout is on Nov. 17.

To promote this event in Juneau, informational booths will be set up for the week of Nov. 14-18 in the main lobbies at the SEARHC Ethel Lund Medical Center and the SEARHC Dental/Behavioral Health Clinic. On Prince of Wales Island, an informational table will be set up in support of this event on Nov. 17, at the Alicia Roberts Medical Center in Klawock, at the Alma Cook Health Center in Hydaburg and at the Kasaan Health Center.

The Great American Smokeout’s goal is to motivate smokers to quit using tobacco, while also raising awareness about effective quitting techniques and programs. An estimated 46 million adults in the United States smoke cigarettes and approximately half will die prematurely from smoking cigarettes.

The SEARHC Tobacco Quit Program is open to all SEARHC Native patients. The program offers one year of behavioral support and three months of free nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) products, such as gum, lozenges and patches. According to the U.S. Public Health Service, discount cigarettes users are six times more likely to quit with behavioral support and NRT products than when they try to quit “cold turkey.”

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