November 12, 2007

Purdue to offer smoking cessation program as part of smokeout

The Student Wellness Office at the Purdue University Student Health Center and other campus groups will encourage smokers to quit the habit for one day in the hope that they will decide to quit for good.

Purdue Pharmacy, the Student Wellness Office and the Purdue University Student Health Center are coordinating the tobacco cessation program.

"We are very excited about Purdue's new tobacco cessation program for students," said Jessica Trimble, alcohol, tobacco and other drug education coordinator at the Student Wellness Office. "According to our health survey from spring 2007, more than 29 percent of student smokers on campus have tried to quit in the last 12 months. We want to provide the support necessary to help students quit using tobacco products."

Information about the smoking cessation program and related materials will be available from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the lobby of Steven C. Beering Hall of Liberal Arts and Education. 

At Purdue Pharmacy in the Robert E. Heine Pharmacy Building, Room 118, trained pharmacy students and pharmacists will provide one-on-one counseling and a product called the X-pack, which will be filled with information, a list of Web sites for additional resources and items such as toothpicks, stress putty and chewing gum.

The X-pack was developed through funding from the National Institutes of Health and was designed to target this age group. It is designed like an oversized cigarette box and includes information about health benefits the ex-smoker can expect after certain amounts of time have passed, the amount of money they have saved and information about the chemicals found in cigarettes and other places these chemicals are commonly found. More information about the product is available at https://www.x-pack.org.

"This initiative offers more ways to help Purdue students quit smoking by combining a self-help tool, the X-pack, and peer-to-peer cessation counseling sessions with pharmacy students," said Alan Zillich, assistant professor of pharmacy practice, one of the organizers of the initiative. "Our pharmacy students and staff are happy to be working with the Student Wellness Office and Health Center to make cessation services more accessible and effective for patients."

In addition to tobacco dependence and cessation counseling coursework that is part of the core pharmacy curriculum, students studying any of the health-care disciplines may take an elective course to further their education in this area, he said.

"The most effective programs for helping people quit smoking include behavioral support and counseling," Zillich said. "We think students will respond well to counseling sessions from someone to whom they can relate. The pharmacy students will be going through similar stresses and circumstances as the students trying to quit smoking."

 The pharmacy students involved in the program are trained to counsel the patients about what to expect as they quit smoking, withdrawal symptoms, how to recognize and handle triggers and the available prescription treatments that may help them deal with the process.

"The program also allows the pharmacy students to practice the counseling skills they learned in the classroom," Zillich said. "It gives them hands-on experience and integrates another component of practice experience into their education."

The program is free of charge, and students wanting to participate in the program will be asked to fill out a short questionnaire. They will receive the X-pack, speak with a peer-counselor and will be able to participate in a series of up to four counseling sessions.

Besides Beering Hall, information also will be available in the Student Wellness Office, Purdue University Student Health Center, Room 201, and the Purdue Pharmacy, Robert E. Heine Pharmacy Building, Room 118.

Trimble said the Great American Smokeout is particularly relevant to Purdue students and Indiana residents. Approximately 17 percent of Purdue students who responded to a recent wellness survey reported they had smoked in the previous 30 days and around 24 percent of Indiana residents smoke, giving the state the sixth highest rate in the nation, she said.

Zillich said the recent laws passed making restaurants and bars in the area smoke-free provide an impetus for the program in addition to increase in taxes on tobacco.

The team is working to create a model that could be disseminated and used in pharmacy settings as well as other pharmacy schools throughout the nation, he said.

The program officially launched on Nov. 1, and more than 20 students are already participating.

The Great American Smokeout is part of the American Cancer Society's Great American Health Challenge, a year-round initiative that encourages Americans to adopt healthy lifestyles to reduce their risk of cancer.

Writers: Christy Jones, (765) 494-1089, christyjones@purdue.edu

Elizabeth Gardner, (765) 494-2081, ekgardner@purdue.edu

Sources: Jessica Trimble, (765) 496-3363, jltrimble@purdue.edu

Alan Zillich, (317) 613-2315 ext. 320, azillich@purdue.edu

Nancy Maylath, director of Purdue University Student Health Center, (765) 494-9559, nmaylath@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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