More about CURE
Key components of CURE
CURE aims to implement and deliver the following:
- All patients who are admitted to hospital are asked whether they smoke and their response is recorded in the hospitals’ electronic patients records (EPR).
- All smokers are offered immediate Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) at the moment of admission to help alleviate the cravings for nicotine during that admission.
- All smokers are offered specialist support through motivational interviewing and behavioural change support as well as access to additional evidence-based pharmacotherapy treatments for tobacco addiction.
- All smokers are offered further appointments with a specialist team after discharge from hospital to continue their support.
- Hospitals and hospital grounds are to become completely Smokefree environments for all, supporting smokers in their quest to stop smoking and protecting patients, public and staff from second-hand smoke.
Implementation of CURE effectively across all areas of the hospital requires the following:
- Training the medical workforce to have the competence and confidence to discuss and initiate the treatment for tobacco addiction with smokers (mandatory training)
- A standardised assessment and treatment pathway for smokers admitted to secondary care, which has now been delivered and implemented at Wythenshawe
- An appropriately resourced Specialist Nurse team to see all smokers admitted to secondary care and design individualised treatment plans including beyond discharge
- Standardised and robust handover of treatment plan to primary care upon discharge
- Culture change within secondary care to embed the treatment of tobacco addiction into all medical teams’ day-to-day practice
- IT systems to support the delivery of this programme
