MONDAY, 25 JANUARY, 2016

IMMEDIATE RELEASE: PHOTOGRAPH ATTACHED – (L-R: SANDRA STEWART AND JODI MOODIE)

Become a quitter to improve your health!

NHS Tayside’s Smoke Free Services team is offering help to anyone who wants to improve their health by quitting smoking.

Sandra Stewart, a waste management officer in Systems Performance at Royal Victoria Hospital in Dundee, smoked for a number of years before finally quitting after getting support from the Smoke Free Services team.

She made the decision to quit ahead of a minor operation at Ninewells Hospital when doctors advised her that it would benefit her health.

Sandra said, “I started smoking in my twenties and have tried to stop a few times before but I have always started again. When I was going for an operation, the doctors encouraged me to stop smoking so I decided there and then to do it.”

Sandra, who stopped smoking in September last year, said she has already seen benefits to her health.

“I have noticed differences in myself since I stopped smoking,” she said. “I’ve noticed small things like getting up and down stairs without being out of breath. It makes a difference.

“My family are proud of me for quitting. I’m determined to stick to it this time.”

After making her decision to stop smoking, Sandra attended quit4u sessions with the NHS Tayside Smoke Free Services team for 12 weeks to receive extra advice and support.

quit4u is a scheme which supports smokers living in an eligible quit4u postcode area in Tayside to give up. The initiative offers an incentive of £12.50 supermarket credit per week for 12 weeks to spend on groceries if they pass a regular carbon monoxide breath test.

Sandra said she would definitely encourage others to seek the support available in Tayside to kick the smoking habit for good.

Sandra said, “If people really want to stop, they should contact the Smoke Free Services team. It does take real willpower to stop but they can also give you information and support to help you.”

Health improvement project support officer Jodi Moodie, said, “Sandra has done really well to stop smoking and it’s great that she sees it benefiting her health and everyday life. 

“Quitting smoking is a life changing event for people but having support can make stopping more successful.

“We offer a free, friendly service to help support anyone who wants to make their smoking a thing of the past.”

Giving up smoking is the single most important lifestyle decision that anyone can make to improve their health immediately.

Anyone who wants to stop smoking can call NHS Tayside Smoke Free Services on 0845 600 999 6 to find out about all the ways in which NHS Tayside can help support people to become smoke free. You can also like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/nhstaysidesmokefree

Health benefits to quitting smoking

• 20 minutes after quitting your blood pressure and pulse return to normal

• 48 hours - no nicotine is left in your body. Your senses of taste and smell are greatly improved

• 72 hours - your breathing becomes easier and your energy levels increase

• 2-12 weeks after quitting smoking your circulation improves and exercise can be easier

• 3-9 months - any coughs, wheezing and breathing problems improve

• Within one year the risk of heart attack is halved

• Within 10 years the risk of lung cancer is halved and the risk of heart attack is at the same level

as non-smokers

• Medium to long term – stopping smoking at any age increases your life expectancy, provided you

stop before the onset of serious disease. Even if you have developed a disease, you can benefit

from stopping as your body will be under less strain and be able to fight it more easily.

The new NHS Tayside ‘Value Your NHS’ campaign encourages patients, carers, staff and the general public to make the best use of the services we provide to ensure we can continue to deliver person-centred, safe and effective treatment and care into the future.

It’s your NHS – you can help us to make use of our resources better. Everyone can make a difference. Tell us what the NHS means to you and your family - #lovenhstayside.

Notes to Editors – Value Your NHS

Value Your NHS is a campaign for NHS staff, patients and their families, carers and the general public to engage and inform around the challenges that the NHS faces over the coming years. These challenges include an increasingly ageing population with longer life expectancy, increasing numbers of people with long-term and multiple conditions, increasing costs and growing demand for services combined with continuing pressures on public finances.

NHS Tayside is committed to making the best use of public money while ensuring we continue to deliver person-centred, high quality and effective care to our patients. Value Your NHS will encourage the general public and our staff to also make the best use of these resources, to ensure we are able to continue to deliver sustainable healthcare into the future.

As part of the campaign, we are asking staff, patients and the public to tell us what the NHS means to them and their families. We are asking them to take a photo of themselves making a ‘hand heart’ and saying why they value NHS Tayside by tweeting or posting on Facebook using the hashtag #lovenhstayside.

Contact:

Debbie Huband

NHS Tayside Communications

(01382) 740134