World Smokefree Day: Southern DHB Smokefree team encouraging more smokefree workplaces
It’s World Smokefree Day (31 May) and Southern DHB’s Smokefree team are encouraging and supporting more workplaces to become smokefree.
The number of totally smokefree workplaces is increasing. More and more businesses are going over and above the legal requirements and declaring all workspaces, including outdoor areas, to be smokefree, and helping employee’s access stop smoking support. Local authorities are also showing strong leadership by declaring public places, spaces and events to be smokefree.
“Here in Otago and Southland we are celebrating so many success stories. Invercargill City Council has made their CBD smokefree, Oceania Gold’s Macraes Mine is a smokefree worksite, and Patagonia Chocolates in Queenstown, Wanaka and Arrowtown have smokefree outdoor dining just to name a few. There are similar actions happening around the country and collectively it all moves the country closer to the Government’s goal of Smokefree Aotearoa 2025,” says Southern DHB Smokefree Coordinator Debby Newton.
Today, the Dunedin Smokefree team presented a smokefree award to Alison Lambert, the owner of Market Kitchen on George Street who has made the outdoor area of her business smokefree. Alison says, “Supporting smokefree is important as we want to offer a healthy environment inside and out! We are passionate about nutrition in our food and not having smoking on our premise goes hand in hand with our ethos towards a healthier life.”
“World Smokefree Day is the ideal time to celebrate smokefree successes. We can have a smokefree Aotearoa by 2025 if we work together to help our friends, whanāu and workmates become smokefree,” says Debby.
If you’re a business wanting to become smokefree and would like some support with signage and policy guidelines contact the Smokefree team on 0800 737 342.
For more information for individuals about becoming smokefree, contact the Southern Stop Smoking Service. The service is free and to get in touch with them phone (03) 214 5260 or free phone 0800 925 242, email the service at admin@stopsmoking.nz, or refer online at www.kaitahu.maori.nz/online-referrals
For more information about World Smokefree Day, go to: www.worldsmokefreeday.org.nz
Photograph left to right of Megan Barrett Southern DHB Smokefree Coordinator and Komal Suratwala, Health Promotion Advisor, Smokefree.