East Stroudsburg, PA – The World Health Organization (WHO) celebrates World No Tobacco Day today. In an effort to strengthen laws and regulations against the tobacco industry, WHO developed the 2003 WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC). In the document, governments are encouraged to adopt smoke-free indoor policies, educate the public on the harms of tobacco use, and ban tobacco sponsorship and advertising.
In support of the PA Clean Indoor Act, Pocono Medical Center (PMC) adopted a smoke-free campus in 2000. Through support from Tobacco Free Northeast, PMC offers smoking cessation support and nicotine replacement therapies to the community at no charge. In addition, PMC works with area employers to develop smoke-free environments for their employees and visitors. PMC also works with the local P10 group through Youth Infusion, who are the primary contractors for prevention services in Monroe County and conducts education programs for school-aged youth.
“Monroe County has higher than average rates for adult smoking as compared with the rest of Pennsylvania and the nation. Here, one out of every four residents use tobacco compared with one out of five nationally. As you would imagine, we also have higher lung cancer rates than the state and nation”, says Beth Taylor, Director of Wellness and PMC’s Certified Tobacco Treatment Specialist. “While we are proud to have our services available to the residents of Monroe County, there is much work yet to be done to fight the battle on tobacco.”
Individuals who are interested in PMC’s smoking cessation program can call 570-476-3680 for more information.
