3 January 2019
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
- Irish Cancer Society launches new courses for 2019
- Free one-to-one support from the Irish Cancer Society to help local women quit smoking
- Analysis shows approximately half of the participants quit smoking
2 January 2019: The latest group of participants from the Irish Cancer Society’s We Can Quit smoking cessation programme in Cork have graduated from courses in Farranree, Mayfield, Ballyphehane and Mallow (pictures attached).
The Society has also launched the next round of We Can Quit courses in Cork, which will begin at in February 2019 in Ballyphehane, Mallow and Mayfield with a new course in Farranree following a little later. Women are invited to register their interest now for the programme which supports women in joining forces to quit smoking together.
Participants in the We Can Quit programme attend weekly group sessions and receive one-to-one support. They will also be offered 12 weeks of free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT).
Pictured at the graduation of The Irish Cancer Society’s “We Can Quit” programme at Newbury House, Mayfield, Cork, on 11th Dec 2018
Picture: Michael O’Sullivan /OSM PHOTO
Pictured at the graduation of The Irish Cancer Society’s “We Can Quit” programme at Farranree Community Centre, Popham’s Road, Farranree, Cork, on 12th Dec 2018
Picture: Alison Miles /OSM PHOTO
Research has shown that smokers who use a combination of group support and two NRT products for a 12 week period are four times more likely to quit and stay smoke-free for good. Recent analysis shows that around half of the total participants in the overall We Can Quit programme had quit smoking at the end of the 12 week course.
Eimear Cotter, Community Cancer Prevention Officer at the Irish Cancer Society said, “We Can Quit has gone from strength to strength since it was set up in Cork in 2016. The current programme, which comes to an end in 2018, has resulted in 149 women completing the 12 week courses and, most importantly, our analysis of the programme shows it has a very positive quit rate. The Society has worked in partnership with the Cork Cancer Action Network, the HSE and a wide range of community and local organisations to achieve its great successes.
“Giving up smoking is extremely difficult and a huge challenge for people, but We Can Quit offers women the support and encouragement to get through it. I want to congratulate all of the women who have completed this programme. I know it’s not an easy thing to do and they should be very proud of themselves!”
Cotter concluded, “Over the years we have seen many women who have managed to successfully quit smoking as a result of the initiative, so we know that our format works. We look forward to welcoming more women to our new courses next year.”
We Can Quit is open to all female smokers in Cork who are over the age of 18 years and are interested in quitting smoking. A calendar of programmes will run in Ballyphehane, Mayfield. Mallow and the Northside from February through the springtime
For more information on We Can Quit or to sign up for your free place on the programme, contact Eimear Cotter on 021 4840597/ ecotter@irishcancer.ie or register online at www.cancer.ie/we-can-quit
