Increasing smoking cessation
Uscreates worked with NHS Portsmouth to reduce smoking prevalence among women in routine and manual employment on a Beacon Partnership Project, one of ten established by the National Social Marketing Centre and the Department for Health.
“Uscreates brought a fresh and innovative approach grounded in thorough audience understanding and behavioural insight to our smoking cessation provision. We learnt new ways of effectively engaging with stakeholders and the public, and the brilliant interventions smokers came up with demonstrates the true value of co-designing with your audience. Uscreates were very adaptable in a rapidly changing commissioning landscape in Portsmouth, and provided a great link and buffer between all the providers.”
Hannah Byrne, NHS Portsmouth.
An extensive scoping phase of primary research using novel methods such as cigarette break chats and lunchtime discussion picnics provided a robust understanding of the lifestyles, attitudes and motivations of smokers.
Combining the transtheoretical model of behaviour change with mapping the smoking cessation services revealed that they were only effectively targeting those ready to quit.
Co-produced recommendations to motivate women to want to quit using a service were tested in a development phase. These included:
- Ann Smokers: a ‘service taster’ session introducing support to smokers in a non-judgemental and sociable environment.
- Smoking Diary: a sticker applied to cigarette packets to increase the smoker’s engagement with their smoking behaviours.
- Come Quit With Me: a support group using friendly competition to drive and sustain quitting.
- Local Recruiters: local people serving as signpost to guide smokers through the range of support available to them.
- What Smoker Are You?: a flexible field tool to help smokers identify the most suitable services available to them.
The Ann Smokers intervention has been further developed and evaluated for cost effectiveness. Results include:
- 67% of participants increased service knowledge
- 44% of participants increased intent to quit in next 3 months
- 17% of participants initiated a quit attempt
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