Smoking Cessation Services
In England and Wales the NHS provides dedicated Stop Smoking Services, which offer counselling and support to smokers wanting to quit. People attending these services are encouraged to use pharmacological aids to increase their chances of successfully quitting. .The Services provide group sessions or individual counselling, depending on the local circumstances and client's preferences.
The Department of Health’s Priorities and Planning Framework (PPF) 2003-2006 included targets on smoking reduction for the NHS: The 2004 Spending Review now requires the Department of Health to reduce the underlying determinants of ill health and health inequalities by reducing smoking rates to 21% or less by 2010, with a reduction in prevalence among routine and manual groups to 26% or less.
NICE Guidance - Full report (External Web Page)
NICE guidance – Smoking cessation services in primary care, pharmacies, local authorities and workplaces, particularly for manual working groups, pregnant women and hard to reach communities. This guidance aims to ensure that stop smoking services are as effective as possible.
NICE guidance - Quick reference guide (External Web Page)
Smoking cessation services - Summary of guidance
ASH Briefing for HM Treasury: Performance Management and Smoking Cessation Targets
ASH Briefing for HM Treasury: setting out ideas on how to improve NHS performance management targets for smoking cessation
Latest statistics on Smoking Cessation Services (External Web Page)
Independent NHS Special Health Authority that collects analyses and distributes national statistics on health and social care. Contains the latest quarterly figures for English Stop Smoking Services.
Smoking Treatment Services in England: Implementation and Outcomes. (External Web Page)
A series of articles reviewing the effectiveness of the treatment services. Published as a supplement to the journal Addiction.
Guidance for smokefree hospital trusts (External PDF)
Provides help on putting a smokefree policy in NHS buildings into practice.
The aim of this policy, set out in the Choosing Health Government White Paper, is to protect and improve the health of staff, patients, visitors and remove the dangers of second-and smoke.
Latest Archived Items - access the rest of the archive here
Improving local access to smoking cessation therapies through patient group directions (External PDF)
The charity PharmacyHealthLink has produced a guidance document to support the use of Patient Group Directions (PGDs) to supply smoking cessation products on the NHS at a local level. Patient Group Directions are designed to widen access to prescription medicines by enabling non-physician health care professionals to supply them. Updated May 2005
Stop Smoking Service Quality and Delivery Indicators and Targets
Briefing by Professor Robert West for the Healthcare Commission on Stop Smoking Service Quality and Delivery Indicators and Targets
NICE guideline on management of chronic heart failure in adults in primary and secondary care (External PDF)
The Guideline contains a series of 'lifestyle recommendations' to complement managing the care and treatment of people with chronic heart failure. Along with exercise and diet, patients are to be strongly advised not to smoke and referrals to smoking cessation services should be considered. July 2003
