When it comes to tobacco cessation programs, Trillium Community Health Plan goes far beyond the norm of giving its 89,708 members access to counseling and pharmacological benefits. Trillium has offered training to tobacco cessation counselors throughout the community.
“We trained 37 tobacco cessation counselors who have been placed in primary care and behavioral health offices (throughout Lane county),” said Debi Farr, public relations specialist.
Whitney Dudley, a therapist at the Center for Family Development in Eugene is among the tobacco cessation counselors who participated in Trillium’s three-day tobacco cessation counseling training. She's the Center’s tobacco cessation group facilitator and counselor, and facilitates a weekly tobacco cessation group at Springfield Family Physicians. Dudley is also the DUII Coordinator for Center for Family Development and a co-occurring behavioral health therapist.
“Trillium's been really good about providing training for clinicians,” Dudley said. “That (tobacco cessation) training was free. That’s huge.”
Dudley who uses the curriculum called “Learning about Healthy Living: Tobacco and You (Williams, et al.)” with individuals and groups, says there’s an extra benefit with group participation.
“In a group, they discuss their experiences and learn from each other, which is ultimately what I hope for,” she noted.
The curriculum includes activities that help clients understand the consequences of smoking and the benefits of quitting, but the discussion goes beyond giving up the habit.
“It’s not just about tobacco,” Dudley explained. “It includes information about diet and exercise and about increasing overall well-being.”
Participants learn how smoking works as a coping mechanism and impacts their mental health.
“Quitting is not a black and white process,” Dudley said. ““It’s definitely a struggle for people, and it’s an ongoing battle for sure.”
Unfortunately, there's a lack of data about such cessation efforts because it's difficult to measure.
“We don’t really have enough data at this time to report,” Farr said. “We attempt to track tobacco usage in our membership, but we know that it's seriously under-reported in claims data.”
But even without hard-core data, Dudley sees some success in every client she helps.
“Success is different for every person,” Dudley explained. “Some people are able to cut back, and some have switched to an e-cigarette. For those people, those were successful outcomes.”
And for some, even thinking about quitting is a successful step.
“The perceived negative consequences of smoking, like anxiety and weight gain, are huge fears,” Dudley said. “Talking about smoking and quitting is a hard thing for people. It’s asking a lot. It’s one of the hardest drugs to give up. I honor all the people who give it a try.”
For More Information:
https://www.thelundreport.org/content/tobacco-prevention-bolstered-partnership
https://www.thelundreport.org/content/tackling-tobacco-what-some-ccos-are-doing-break-habit
Joanne can be reached at [email protected].
