Humber and North Yorkshire Swap and Stop Campaign
Campaign to reach over 100,000 people to help them stop smoking.
Situation
According to most recent statistics Adult smoking prevalence in England in 2021 was 14.4% The prevalence of current smokers was highest in the North-east at 14.8% but this has since dropped to 13.2% with the aim to continue to reduce this figure.
The purpose of the Humber and North Yorkshire Swap and Stop Campaign was to inspire new year quit attempts across all communities within the Humber and North Yorkshire ICB. The campaign name aligns with the localised campaign material used in hospitals across Humber and North Yorkshire, so it presented an opportunity to create a bridge between the stop smoking support offered by Trusts and within the community.
Solution
The Swap and Stop Campaign is an initiative designed to encourage individuals in the Humber and North Yorkshire region to stop smoking. Its primary objectives included.
Inspiring Quit Attempts – The campaign aimed to motivate individuals across communities within the ICB to make quit attempts during the month of January and onwards using digital health solutions such as apps.
Providing Information – The campaign seeks to educate individuals about effective methods to help them to think about quitting smoking. This includes digital resources, strategies and support that can assist someone on their journey.
Mood Benefits – The Swap and Stop Campaign underscores the positive impact that quitting smoking can have on mental health, particularly in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression. This aspect highlights the holistic benefits beyond the physical benefits of stopping smoking.
Health Benefits – The campaign also aims to raise awareness about the various advantages associated with stop smoking. These benefits may include improved lung function, reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and the decreased likelihood of developing smoking related illnesses.
Call to Action
The main call to action of this campaign was for individuals in Humber and North Yorkshire who want to quit smoking to visit the Humber and North ORCHA Public Facing Library where we hosted the Swap and Stop Landing Page with a range of digital health apps for personalised guidance, progress tracking and community support.
Results
In January 2024 which was the first month that the campaign was launched we saw nearly 10,000 individuals access the Swap and Stop campaign landing page. Prior to January the most sessions the site had seen for a single month was just over 4000 showing the campaign has had a clear impact on site traffic/bringing people to the site.
Of the estimated 185,000 people across Humber and North Yorkshire who are smokers, 5% of those visited the campaign page in the first weeks of the campaigns launch.
62% of the apps downloaded in January were from the Swap and Stop campaign. The most downloaded app for January was the NHS Quit Smoking app followed by My Quit Route which had 52% of its overall downloads on the Humber and North Yorkshire site since the campaign went live.
By Combining messaging on the physical and emotional benefits to make a healthier choices around smoking with accessible resources such as digital health apps, the Swap and Stop Campaign has empowered individuals to take proactive steps towards a smoke – free lifestyle.
Stop Smoking – Humber & North Yorkshire (hnyhealthapps.co.uk)