South Australians will be offered financial incentives to quit smoking and vaping as part of a ground-breaking trial in Adelaide’s northern suburbs aimed at supporting people to give up smoking and e-cigarettes to improve their health.
The Incentive to Quit trial is the first government-funded program of its kind in Australia to offer incentives in the form of supermarket vouchers to smokers and e-cigarette users for reaching key milestones in their journey to become smoke or vape-free.
Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia (DASSA) has partnered with Northern Adelaide Aboriginal Health, known as Watto Purrunna Aboriginal Health, for the trial, which priorities reducing smoking in high prevalence groups.
Participants can earn up to $150 in supermarket vouchers during the program based on how long they go without smoking or vaping and by accessing support services such as Quitline.
The program is initially focussed on supporting Aboriginal people to quit and will also soon be offered to other groups including those with heart and lung conditions and mental health conditions.
The trial, which will run until the end of June 2024, has been prompted by evidence which shows the effectiveness of incentive programs to support people to quit smoking.
It is anticipated the program will help to improve the health of South Australians and curb the costs of smoking on the public health system, which is estimated to be $1.5 billion nationally each year.
Incentive to Quit is part of the state’s ambitious Tobacco Control Strategy 2023-2027, which aims to reduce daily smoking prevalence in South Australians from 9.8 per cent in 2021 to six per cent in 2027.
The trial will cost $500,000 and is being funded by Drug and Alcohol Services SA.
South Australians accessing Aboriginal health, mental health and cardiopulmonary health services in northern Adelaide can either be referred by their doctor or ask them about registering for the program.
Quotes
Attributable to Chris Picton
Our new strategy on smoking sets out a bold target for South Australia to have the lowest smoking rate in the country. If we are to achieve this, it has to be matched with bold initiatives, such as the Incentive to Quit program.
We want to do all we can in South Australia to reduce smoking and e-cigarette use and the toll it takes on individuals and the community.
Attributable to NALHN Executive Director Aboriginal Health, Kurt Towers
Tobacco smoking is the most preventable cause of illness and early death in Aboriginal communities, responsible for 23 per cent of the gap in disease burden between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians.
We are proud of the role the Watto Purrunna Aboriginal Health Service plays in engaging Aboriginal consumers in strategies to support quitting and prevent the uptake of smoking.
Attributable to University of Adelaide Associate Professor Kristin Carson-Chahhoud
Incentive to Quit is a first-of-its-kind smoking cessation program for Australia which uses incentives combined with proven quit smoking strategies to help motivate smokers and vapers to reach milestones in their quitting journey.
The program is being trialled as a unique and supportive approach to empower successful quit attempts.
