Tasmanian Aboriginal Tobacco Control Project
This project aims to reduce smoking prevalence of Tasmanian Aboriginal people by collaborating with Aboriginal Health and Community services to identify solutions to the high use of tobacco within Aboriginal Communities. It aims to increase the skills of Aboriginal Health Workers by providing training to plan and deliver effective cessation programs and to encourage and support smoke free workplaces.
This project continues to increase the awareness of tobacco harm within Tasmanian Aboriginal families and communities and is engaging health and community organisations to take a more proactive approach to tobacco control.
- Brief intervention training for Aboriginal Health Workers in supporting smokers to quit
- Ongoing training in the ABC framework for smoking cessation provided to the Tasmanian Aboriginal health and community sector.
- Project Officer attends Community forums and health events by request.
- Ongoing cessation support programs
- support - both in groups and one-on-one
- brief intervention
- preventive health promotion within Aboriginal communities
- Fresh Start Courses have been delivered and are available on request.
- 'Docs for a Day' sessions have been provided as part of promoting a smoke free lifestyle to youth.
- 'Looking Good Feeling Great' workshops promoting a healthy smoke-free lifestyle to young Aboriginal women.
This project has been funded by the Office for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health (OATSIH) on an annual basis from 2006-2010
Quit Tasmania continues to foster its working partnerships with:
- Tasmanian Alcohol and Drug Services,
- OATSIH,
- Department of Health and Ageing,
- Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre,
- Mersey Leven Aboriginal Corporation,
- South East Tasmanian Aboriginal Association,
- Flinders Island Aboriginal Association Incorporated,
- Circular Head Aboriginal Corporation,
- Indigenous Student Support Georgetown
- Building a positive relationship between Quit teams and Aboriginal communities.
- Quit has been able to work independently with each community on an 'as needs' basis to deliver training and support. This has helped Quit to deliver programs and services that are appropriate and of value to the community.
- Having a dedicated Project Officer specifically for Aboriginal smoking cessation.
- Quit resources and information are easily accessable to each project.
Accessing all workers in Aboriginal communities to offer training and support has somethimes been difficult because of their other work and community commitments.
Client feedback for the brief intervention training and Fresh Start courses has been positive and requests for on-going training and support have been received. All health workers commented on their evaluation forms that they felt more confident about offering brief intervention to clients following Quit's education sessions. 'Docs for a Day' sessions have received excellent feedback from Aboriginal Youth workers and teachers and resulted in requests for additional sessions. Also the 'Looking Good Feeling Great' sessions have been positively received by the participants.
Pre and Post evaluation is on-going for the Brief Intervention training, Fresh Start course and Looking Good Feeling Great sessions. So far the evaluation has highlighted that more training within the Aboriginal health and community sector on motivational interviewing, quitting medications and smoking during pregnancy is required.
A Tobacco Cessation Toolkit for Tasmanian Aboriginal Community health services has been produced by quit and is handed out following brief intervention cessation training.
The above Aboriginal specific resources are not currently avaliable electronically, however Quit Tasmania has other valuable resources and information available via their website at www.quittas.org.au
Marie Boadle
Project Officer
Quit Tasmania
145 New Town Road
NEW TOWN TASMANIA 7008
Ph: (03) 6228 2921
Email: mboadle@quittas.org.au
Web: www.quittas.org.au
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