THE New Vois Association of the Philippines (NVAP) over the weekend called on the smoking public to give the Department of Health (DOH) ‘quitline’ a try.
The quitline is a phone- and mobile-centered support service to help Filipino smokers quit tobacco.
Nvap President Emer Rojas said the group hopes smokers will take advantage of the smoking cessation program recently launched by the department at the Lung Center in Quezon City.
“We should all value health as our primary concern. We, therefore, urge all smokers to avail [themselves] of the free DOH quitline and be on their way to enjoy life to the fullest,” Rojas said.
He said the program can help a lot in the goal to quit and a best chance to start living a smoke-free life.
He added that reluctance to try the program may result in the smokers’ developing noncommunicable diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, heart ailments, hypertension and diabetes, among others.
“If they don’t quit, then, they take the risk and may end up as victims, like me, or even worse, die,” said Rojas, who is a former smoker and a laryngeal cancer survivor.
The quitline can be accessed by calling 165364. Smokers can receive real-time counseling and support through the telephone.
On the other hand, the mobile-based cessation program, which can be done via texting ‘STOPSMOKE’ to (29290)165364, will provide clients with text messages of support and guidance to quit smoking.
“Tobacco smoking is one of the single leading cause of death and diseases in the world. The quitline is the final link to complete government support to the NCD [newcastle disease] prevention program of the country,” Rojas added.
For that, he lauded Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial for that well done accomplishment under her leadership in the health department.
Based on the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS)-Philippines 2015, over 76 percent of the respondents are interested in quitting.
More than 56 percent of the GATS-Philippines 2015 respondents also said they have been advised to quit smoking by their health-care providers.