Tobacco use in Oswego County is considered a serious health issue--one that is being addressed through a five-year comprehensive tobacco control grant funded by the New York State Department of Health.

The program's coordinator, assistant, and coalition members are working with area schools, health organizations, and human service agencies to address the issue of tobacco use in our county.

The goals of the Oswego County Tobacco-Free Network include:

To promote quitting among youth and adults by:

• Sponsoring "train-the-trainer" opportunities in youth and adult cessation programs for area educators, health professionals, and human service providers;
• Supporting clinic based cessation services (one-on-one counseling and nicotine replacement therapy management at the Oswego County Opportunities health clinics in Fulton and Oswego);
• Funding community based cessation services (smoking cessation programs that are linked with alcohol and drug counseling and mental hygiene services at Northern Oswego County Health Services, Inc., Farnham, Inc., Oswego County Opportunities and Harbor Lights Chemical Dependency Services);
• Promoting services provided by the New York State Smoker's Quitline (1-888-609-6292) and Quitsite, which includes information, referrals, and advice on smoking cessation; and
• Sponsoring/participating in community events that promote tobacco cessation awareness.

To prevent initiation of tobacco use among youth by:

• Sponsoring "train-the-trainer" opportunities in youth prevention programs for area educators, health professionals, and human service providers;
• Providing educational presentations in area schools, summer camps, after school programs, etc.;
• Empowering youth to recognize the tobacco industry's advertising tactics to lure them into using their products;
• Giving young people an understanding of the cancer-causing chemicals found in tobacco products and their relation to household products such as ammonia, rat poison, and nail polish remover;
• Facilitating discussions with youth around the physical consequences of using tobacco along with hands-on experiments to help make the message more real;
• Working with children and teens to plan and practice how to resist pressures to try tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs; and
• Sponsoring and participating in events that promote tobacco prevention awareness.

To reduce the disproportional use of tobacco use by women of childbearing years who receive Medicaid by:

• Linking smoking cessation services with women involved in the Women, Infants, and Children Program (WIC) to promote a tobacco-free lifestyle for the entire family;
• Supporting the implementation of the American Cancer Society's Fresh Start Family smoking cessation program by Oswego Hospital's maternity staff; and
• Placing promotional materials identifying the effects that smoking has on pregnant women and their unborn child in public sites frequented by target population.

To reduce "second-hand" or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) by:

• Compiling and distributing a "Smoke Free Dining Menu" for Oswego County to promote the reduction of ETS exposure for both patrons and employees of restaurants;
• Working with area workplaces to become smoke free; and
• Developing a multimedia campaign regarding the harmful effects of ETS.