Pub. 3 2019 Issue 2

I n Jan. 1964, Luther Terry, the Surgeon General of the United States, addressed a nation where over 40% of adults smoked cigarettes on a regular basis. His message was clear and irrefutable: cigarette smoking causes lung and laryngeal cancer, along with a number of other severe illnesses. In the months and years following Surgeon General Terry’s report, Congress took action, and smoking rates began to drop. Some smokers even quit cold turkey after hearing about Terry’s report because the informa- tion about the negative effects of smoking had come from a reputable healthcare professional; Terry was not just another friend or family member imploring a loved one to quit, but someone with actual credibility in the medical field — a doctor, explaining in no uncer- tain terms that tobacco users needed to quit because smoking would harm them. Today, tobacco remains the number one cause of pre- ventable death and illness in the United States, and many tobacco users just need that push from their healthcare providers that will put them on the path to a successful quit attempt. The Tobacco Prevention and Control Program encourages all healthcare providers to participate in the “Ask, Advise, Connect” protocol with their patients. Research has shown that patients who are connected to quit services by their healthcare providers are up to 30 times more likely to en- roll in tobacco cessation treatment programs. Ask, Advise, Connect is quick and easy; you simply: 1. Ask every patient about tobacco use, including vaping; 2. Advise all tobacco users to quit and tell them why they should quit; and finally, 3. Connect patients to free quit services by visiting waytoquit.org , clicking on the “Healthcare Providers” link in the upper right-hand corner, scrolling down to the “Utah Tobacco Quit Line Online Referral Form,” and taking a minute to fill out and submit the form for your patient. Thank you for being the credible and dependable voice who will motivate your patient to quit tobacco. Feel free to email waytoquit@utah.gov to receive free trainings and/or resources on Ask, Advise, Connect, or to receive free tobacco and vaping cessation materials for your patients. 25 | Tobacco Users Need You to Tell Them to Quit