January 2020 Volume 2, Issue 1

ARMC Tobacco Cessation Department

NEW-LUNG Newsletter

 Currently, the Tobacco Cessation Department at Anaheim Regional Medical Center (ARMC) serves over 3,700 people who want to quit smoking each year. On average, this means the department helps 10 people quit smoking every single day. With a staff of 11 and services offered in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, and Farsi, the Tobacco Cessation Department has come a long way since 2003, when it was first established at ARMC.

For January, this newsletter focuses around making a New Year’s Resolution to quit smoking. The theme for 2020 is:

Also included in this newsletter is the history of the Tobacco Cessation Department at ARMC and our 2020 campaign to assist people in their process of quitting.

In December, we helped 356 people quit smoking!

24 ARMC Patients Served

167 Adults Served

65 Youths Served

Upcoming Classes

UCI - Cancer Center

200 S. Manchester Ave., Orange

Cancer Center Office 8th Floor- Room 200

January 27 & February 3

Fountain Valley Regional Hospital

1250 Warner Ave., Fountain Valley

E. Tower Oncology Library - 4th Floor

February 6, 13, 20, 27, & March 5

Mission Hospital

126732 Crown Valley Pkwy., Mission Viejo

February 10, 24, March 2, & 9

For more classes in Orange County, <<click here>>.

Calendar Highlights

Jan. 21 - Squirrel Appreciation Day

Jan. 24 - National Compliment Day

Jan. 25 - Opposite Day

Jan. 28 - Have Fun At Work Day

Jan. 31 - Backwards Day

The Tobacco Cessation Department at ARMC

So what exactly does the Tobacco Cessation Department do at ARMC? The department allows ARMC to meet the Joint Commission Core Measures on tobacco, as shown below. Each day, the department receives referrals for in-patients who have a tobacco history. Department staff provides best practice bedside-counseling to patients who are interested in quitting and them a free supply of nicotine patches they can use after dis-charge. Since the Tobacco Cessation Department is fully funded by a grant from the Or-ange County Health Care Agency, this allows these core measures to be met by experts in the field at no cost to ARMC. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released interim guidance for managing patients with e-cigarette/vaping associated lung injury. In line with the California Health Alert Network, the Tobacco Cessation Department will now start collecting information on e-cigarette/vape use during in-patient rounds and provide bedside vape cessation counseling to those who are interested.

ARMC Tobacco Cessation Department NEW-LUNG Partnerships in Orange County

The NEW-LUNG quit smoking program is housed in Anaheim Regional Medical Center. The Tobacco Cessation Department staff serves all 30 cities in Orange County. Over the years, we have established partnerships with 75 facilities who share our mission in providing tobacco cessation services to their community. The map shows some of the facilities that have partnered with us in the previous years. These facilities work closely with ARMC Tobacco Cessation staff to provide free quit smoking services to their patients, clients, and communities.

Medical Facilities

• Anaheim Regional Medical Center

• Fountain Valley Regional Hospital

• HOAG Hospitals: Irvine & Newport Beach

• Los Alamitos Medical Center

• MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center

• Nhan Hoa Comprehensive Healthcare Clinic

• Placentia-Linda Hospital

• Talbert Medical Center

• St. Jude’s

• St. Joseph Hospital

• St. Joseph Heritage Center

• UCI Medical Center

School Districts (Youth Sites)

• Anaheim Union High School District

• Creekside Education Center (Irvine)

• Dwyer Middle School (Huntington Beach City Elementary)

• Fullerton Union Joint High School District

• Junipero Serra High School (Capistrano USD)

• Los Alamitos Unified School District

• Westminster School District

• Saddleback Valley Unified School District

• Sowers Middle School (Huntington Beach City Elementary)

• Tustin Unified School District

How is the Tobacco Cessation Department Funded?

The Tobacco Cessation Department was established in 2003, by Donna Nash, Director of Cardiovascular Services & ICU/DOU, to conduct quit smoking services for patients at Anaheim Regional Medical Center. When the program began, it was staffed by two individuals, Donna and another nurse. The program started with a budget of $42,000 per year. As the program continued to assist people who want to quit smoking, funding increased to $75,000 within the same project year. Below is a graph showing the growth in funding NEW-LUNG has received since 2003.

Staff Spotlight

Being Filipino-American, I grew up seeing firsthand how tobacco advertising and smoking prevalence affect communities of color disproportionately. During college, I experienced my grandmother’s battle and loss with lung cancer. She never smoked a cigarette in her life, but was exposed to to secondhand smoke from her husband who smoked around her for years. In graduate school, I was part of research studies that focused on cultural implications of smoking in Cambodian-American Communities. I also co-authored an article in the Praeger Handbook of Environmental Health called, “Global Diffusion of Smoke-Free Bars Laws that Prevent Exposure to Secondhand Smoke.” Now that I’ve been running the quit smoking program at ARMC and Orange County for almost 8 years, I never predicted that tobacco would be so intimately connected to my life.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way. Of course, my parents so desperately wanted me to become a doctor or nurse. When I told them I was applying to grad school in public health, they felt disappointed that I “downgraded” my ambitions. After all these years in tobacco cessation, I can confidently say that there are other professions where you can save lives; and my parents finally understand that. Here, in the Tobacco Cessation Department at ARMC, we save lives every day. We are told over and over how much our program has helped patients and people quit smoking…all for free. I’m motivated every morning to come to work to do what I do. I love being creative and finding new ideas to reach more people or coming up with different strategies that enhance our program. I absolutely love being in this field and meeting people who want to quit smoking. Their stories inspire me to continue providing access to free services that combat health disparities. I’m incredibly grateful to be working here at ARMC with a purpose that helps people lead healthier lives.

NEW-LUNG Testimonials

I really enjoyed the program and they helped me out tremendously. The support I obtained - I would have never, ever made it through without their help and continued support. Even after I graduated from the program, they followed up with me for a few months after – sometimes even twice a month. I really, really appreciated that support. It was amazing too from the recovery from cigarette smoking, which I hated. I’m so glad to be cigarette free! -Maria

I’m very pleased with this class. The teacher is very informative, but now it’s up to me to do my part! -Lawerence Casper

I came to this class because I like the way Vanessa teaches. It’s like a type of therapy for me to stay smoke-free. I did it because I love myself and I want to get healthier. I want my family to be proud of me. I don’t want my daughter to keep telling me “Quit smoking! Quit smoking!” I did it because I want love myself, be a good person, save some money to treat myself, and to live a long life. -Esperanza Ramirez

FREE QUIT SMOKING CLASSES

Please RSVP if you would like to sign up.

CALL 1-866-NEW LUNG (639-5864)

Free quit vaping classes are available.

*Must attend ALL CLASSES of 5 session class series.

Participants receive a FREE SUPPLY OF NICOTINE PATCHES.

Funded by the Orange County Health Care Agency/Tobacco Use Prevention Program.