Posted: Thursday, November 21, 2013

A smoking cessation program, training, and participation in Rhode Island’s “smoke out” event helps Providence Center clients quit smoking and tobacco use PROVIDENCE, RI (November 21, 2013)—A recent landmark study found that people with psychiatric conditions smoke at a rate of 2-4 times the general population and that there is a high rate of smoking related deaths among people with mental illness. Over the last year, The Providence Center (TPC) has made significant efforts to reduce smoking among the 9,500 adults with mental illness we serve. TPC’s participation in the Great American Smokeout, which takes place today is one such effort.

“Smoking has a tremendous impact on a person’s ability to live his or her healthiest life. Like all of our programs, smoking cessation supports people in reaching their goals,” said Dale K. Klatzker, Ph.D., President and CEO of The Providence Center. “That the research shows a high prevalence of smoking and early mortality related to tobacco usage among people with behavioral health problems isn’t a surprise to us, but this data makes it all the more important for us to continue to educate and support both our staff and clients.”

The Providence Center’s “Smokeout” is designed to provide clients and staff with information about smoking and its effects on health in a fun, engaging way. Information on quitting smoking, incentives and Nicotine Replacement Product discounts will be available at three stations throughout the center and clients and staff will have the opportunity to assess their carbon monoxide levels using a carbon monoxide detector as part of the education initiative. 

An article published this October in the Journal of Psychiatric Research found that out of a cohort of more than 225,000 people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression demonstrated that tobacco-related conditions comprised 53% of deaths in the people studied who had schizophrenia, 48% of people with bipolar, and 50% of people with depression (Callahan et al 2013).

Currently The Providence Center provides cessation groups 4 days a week, including a group held in Spanish. The program, called Coffee Break, is based on a wellness model and focuses on goal setting. The groups are also designed as an alternative social experience for clients. In September, TPC was awarded a competitive opportunity that allowed Robert Wood Johnson Medical School/Rutgers University to facilitate an all-day training for TPC staff and community partners on tobacco treatment. The training was used as a vehicle to emphasize the impact of tobacco usage on the clients served by TPC, provide tools for clinical staff to engage and support clients who use tobacco and identify key areas that needed to be updated to better reflect the importance placed on managing the tobacco needs of consumers and staff at TPC.

The Providence Center is at the forefront of innovative approaches to behavioral health care designed to meet the changing needs of the more than 12,600 people served each year. Since The Providence Center opened its doors in 1969, it has been a community fixture, providing people from all walks of life with mental health and substance use services in their homes, schools and neighborhoods. In addition to comprehensive high-quality behavioral health services, The Providence Center gives people the tools they need to succeed. Through 50 programs and wrap around services including food and housing, job training, legal services, primary health care and wellness activities The Providence Center helps the people we serve succeed. The Providence Center is the community-based behavioral health partner of New England.

The Great American Smokeout The American Cancer Society marks the Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday of November each year by encouraging smokers to use the date to make a plan to quit, or to plan in advance and quit smoking that day. By quitting — even for one day — smokers will be taking an important step towards a healthier life – one that can lead to reducing cancer risk.