Maura Matthews Health and Wellbeing Development Manager, Tenovus Cancer Charity, Cardiff
Sioned Pearce Research Officer, Tenovus Cancer Charity, Cardiff
Abstract
23% of adults living in Wales smoke (Welsh Health Survey, 2012) and this figure shows no sign of abating. Furthermore, the number of smokers in the most deprived areas of Wales are double that of the most affluent areas; a key driver for health inequalities (Welsh Government, 2012).
Quit with Us is a charity-led research campaign delivered through 32 charity shops in some of the most deprived areas of Wales during March 2014. Charity shop staff were trained to deliver brief intervention for smoking cessation, given materials to run a campaign and capture quantitative and qualitative data on awareness and reported behaviour.
A pilot study of six charity shops carried out in 2013 in areas where lung cancer incidence is above the national average (Welsh Health Survey, 2012) showed positive results from 72 brief interventions. 97% of respondents reported greater awareness of smoking risks and support to quit. The results showed a low level of knowledge around smoking risks.
Building on the findings, this paper reports public knowledge and awareness of smoking and support in relation to local statistics in deprived areas. Feedback from shop staff on the effectiveness of the intervention through qualitative findings from cessation conversations is also given.
