Colorado's Tobacco Quitline Now at National Jewish

Nation's #1 respiratory hospital teams up with the state health department to help Coloradans give up tobacco

Just in time for those New Year's resolutions, Coloradans who want to quit smoking can get free help from trained smoking-cessation counselors from National Jewish Medical and Research Center, ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the country's best respiratory hospital for 6 years in a row.

The State Tobacco Education and Prevention Program (STEPP), part of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), has contracted with National Jewish to provide Quitline telephone counseling services to Coloradans wanting to give up tobacco. Free, confidential and convenient, the Colorado Quitline, launched in October 2001, helps smokers and other tobacco users by providing counseling sessions, resource material and information about medications to help them quit.

"Combining STEPP's resources and expertise with our long history of treating respiratory diseases is a perfect formula for making a major difference in the lives of those who want to give up their tobacco use," said David Tinkelman, MD, Vice President of Health Initiatives at National Jewish. "And it will save Colorado money down the line in terms of the costs of smoking related illness."

Karen DeLeeuw, STEPP's director, said that National Jewish was a "logical fit." "We have in Colorado this great resource in National Jewish, with a distinguished reputation for treating respiratory disease. Now Coloradans can take advantage of that through the Quitline. We think it's a win-win situation."

Quitline services are funded with proceeds from Colorado's portion of the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between tobacco companies and 46 states. No tax dollars are involved and services are free to those who call.

National survey data shows that telephone-based counseling services such as Quitline are effective smoking cessation tools, eventually saving thousands of lives and millions of dollars in future healthcare costs.

National Jewish began providing services under the three-year contract December 16. These services were formerly provided by the National American Cancer Society's call center in Austin, Texas. National Jewish's unique program is run on a customized Internet software program through an Application Service Provider (ASP) relationship with PeopleMed.com, Inc., a subsidiary of Global Med Technologies, Inc.

DeLeeuw added that, despite budget cuts in STEPP's prevention and cessation programs, the Colorado Quitline is expected to continue operating. "The success we've had to date shows that this approach works, and we've made a commitment to Quitline even while we've had to scale back other programs."

Epi Mazzei, R.N., a smoking-cessation expert at National Jewish, offers this for Coloradans wanting to quit: "Simply call the Quitline and a specialist will work with you to help you quit using tobacco. You'll talk to a counselor when it's convenient for you, and you'll get the individual support you need - whether you have questions or concerns about quitting, need help to plan for your quit attempt, or want to know how to support someone who is trying to quit."

The Quitline is available from 7:00 am to 11:00 pm, seven days a week. Counseling is available in both English and Spanish. The toll free number is 1-800-639-QUIT (7848).

National Jewish also offers LUNG LINE, a toll free service available to anyone with questions about respiratory and allergic diseases. In operation for nearly 20 years, LUNG LINE, at 1-800-222-LUNG (5864), serves more than 35,000 people every year.

For more information on STEPP and its programs, contact Jill Conley at 303-692-2526.