Smoking cessation services

This guidance is for NHS and other professionals who have a direct or indirect  responsibility for services that help people to stop  smoking. It may also be of interest to members of the public who wish to quit. The guidance advises the NHS, local authorities and their partners on the range of ser ...

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This guidance is for NHS and other professionals who have a direct or indirect  responsibility for services that help people to stop  smoking. It may also be of interest to members of the public who wish to quit.

The guidance advises the NHS, local authorities and their partners on the range of services that should be available for everyone who smokes or uses tobacco in any form. In particular, this includes pregnant women, those aged under 20, manual workers and people who are on a low income or income support.

It also gives advice on the training and education that managers and staff in stop smoking services need.

Recommended treatments that have been proven to be effective, either separately or combined, include:

• brief interventions by a GP and other practitioners working in a GP practice or the community (including advice, self-help materials and referral for more intensive support)
• individual behavioural counselling
• group behaviour therapy
• pharmacotherapies (for example, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT),varenicline or bupropion)
• self-help materials
• telephone counselling and quitlines
• mass-media campaigns to get the stop-smoking message across – using a combination of, for example, TV, radio and newspaper advertising.

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