New quit team ready to help smokers

As we approach the New Year, many thousands of smokers will be planning to quit smoking and aiming to change their lives for the better. The HSE has today launched a new QUIT personal support service to help those quitters – providing a team of trained advisors, interactive digital tools, empathy and support, and making them twice as likely to quit for good.

Dr. Stephanie O’Keeffe, National Director for Health and Wellbeing, said: “One in every two smokers will die of a tobacco-related disease, and over 5,000 families will lose a loved one this year due to tobacco. 

“The number of smokers in Ireland has dropped once again in 2014, but we want to help even more smokers to quit. Our new QUIT service is built on our years of experience and the success we’ve had in supporting people to make that positive change in their own lives, and become tobacco-free.”

The QUIT team provides support to quitters across a range of channels – over the phone, on Twitter and Facebook, and by SMS and email. Quitters can also use the brand new interactive QUIT.ie website, talking to the QUIT team via Live Chat, and using the online QUITplan.

As well as the new online and phone based support there is a network of face-to face HSE QUIT services in many locations around the country, providing one-to-one and group support for smokers.

However a smoker chooses to access the service, the QUIT team offers evidence-based care through a standard treatment programme, where quitters will be tracked and supported for 12 months to help them quit and stay quit.  

Getting help is easy – check out the following:

Freephone 1800 201 203

Freetext QUIT to 50100

Get started on www.QUIT.ie

Find local HSE QUIT support groups on QUIT.ie or by calling the QUIT team.

Tweet the QUIT team @hseQUITteam

Join the Facebook page www.facecook.com/HSEquit

Share your QUIT Story on the QUIT Heroes App: https://www.facebook.com/HSEquit/app_1568939550003402